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I PASTOR'S 

Ideal Funeral Book 

Scripture Selections, Topics, Texts and 
Outlines, Suggestive Themes and 
Prayers, Quotations and Illus- 
trations, Forms of Services, 
Etc., Etc. 

By 

Arthur H. DeLong 



With an Introduction by 

Bishop William A. Quayle 



Comfort all that mourn" 



CINCINNATI : JENNINGS AND GRAHAM 
NEW YORK: EATON AND 1VIAINS 



r 



i 






Copyrighted, 1910, 
By Jennings and Graham. 



Cd,A'-!7r-?(. 



Introduction. 



This help to the preacher, by my friend 
DeLong, impresses me as being suggestive; 
diversifying in a department of necessitated 
preacher activity where diversity is sorely 
needed, and stimulative in the best sense. 

May it have with it the blessing of God in 
its ministry. 

Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



Preface 



The successful and popular pastor is always a very 
busy man. In the midst of his many pressing duties, 
the sudden and frequent calls for funeral services 
often become a real burden. Usually he has but 
little time for preparation, and suitable material is 
not at hand. Yet it is vitally important that he be at 
his very best on such occasions. Anything, therefore, 
that will render him real and immediate help is to be 
welcomed. 

While there are many publications containing 
Scripture selections and forms of service, we know of 
none which places in the hands of the minister, in 
compact and convenient form, the valuable materials 
and suggestions embodied in this book. 

Besides (180) suitable Scripture selections for every 
possible occasion, we have here more than fifteen hun- 
dred suggestive themes and texts, as well as a number 
of brief outline thoughts around which may be built 
more elaborate funeral addresses. 

Here also may be found ready for immediate refer- 
ence one hundred and fifty of the choicest quotations 
from the best authors for use on such occasions. 

We have added about one hundred short, pithy and 
apt illustrations, which can be used with the utmost 
propriety and impressiveness. 

The pages devoted to Funeral Etiquette will be of 
special value to young and inexperienced ministers. 

The minister will also find use for the Funeral 
Hymns, Poems, and Dying Words of distinguished 
persons. 

5 






PEEFACE 

With this book in his hand the busy pastor has all 
the materials necessary — more than any ordinary li- 
brary could furnish — for the making of funeral ad- 
dresses or sermons. 

If this book will aid the minister in carrying the 
Gospel of Comfort with its healing balm to the 
broken-hearted in the hour of bereavement, the 
Author will believe it has accomplished its purpose. 

Arthur H. DeLong. 



. 



Table of Contents 



PAGE 

Introduction 3 

Preface 5 

Explanations and Abbreviations 11 

Funeral of a Child 13 

Scripture Selections 13 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes: 18 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 28 

A Prayer 30 

Quotations 31 

Illustrations 37 

Funeral of a Young Person 40 

Scripture Selections 40 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 46 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 49 

A Prayer 51 

Quotations 52 

Illustrations 56 

Funeral of a Person in Middle Life 59 

Scripture Selections 59 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 63 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 66 

A Prayer 68 

Quotations 69 

Illustrations 73 

Funeral of an Aged Person 76 

Scripture Selections 76 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 81 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 84 

A Prayer 86 

7 






CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Funeral of an Aged Person — Continued. 

Quotations . 87 

Illustrations 90 

Frailty of Life and Certainty of Death 93 

Scripture Selections 93 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 96 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 100 

A Prayer . , 102 

Quotations 103 

Illustrations 106 

Comfort for the Bereaved 109 

Scripture Selections 109 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 112 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 115 

A Prayer 117 

Quotations 118 

Illustrations 121 

Immortality ♦ . . 124 

Scripture Selections. 124 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 127 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 129 

A Prayer 131 

Quotations 132 

Illustrations 135 

Eesurrection 138 

Scripture Selections 138 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 143 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 145 

A Prayer 147 

Quotations 148 

Illustrations 151 

Judgment 154 

Scripture Selections 154 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 157 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 158 

A Prayer 160 

Quotations 161 

Illustrations 162 

8 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Heaven 164 

Scripture Selections 164 

Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes 167 

Suggestive Themes and Texts 171 

A Prayer 173 

Quotations 174 

Illustrations. 180 

Funeral Hymns 185 

Funeral Poems for Eeading or Quotation. . 187 

Dying Words of Distinguished Persons 189 

Funeral Etiquette 195 

Before the Funeral 195 

When Requested to Officiate 195 

At the Services 196 

At the Cemetery 198 

Burial of the Dead — Forms of Service 199 

A Short Form 199 

The Episcopal Service 202 

Eef ormed Church Service 206 

Committals 211 

Benedictions 213 



Explanations and Abbreviations 



For convenience this book is divided into sections, 
each complete in itself; with Scripture Selections, 
Topics, Texts, Outlines and Notes, Suggestive Themes 
and Texts, Quotations, Illustrations, and a Prayer 
for each section. 

Under the head Topics, Texts and Outlines, will be 
found references, Scripture passages, quotations, and 
illustrations appropriate for that topic or text. These 
and others in the book may be used at the discretion 
of the minister. 

ABBREVIATIONS 

Sept. Sel.— Scriptural Selection 1, 2, 3, etc. 
q— quotations, 1, 2, 3, etc. I— illustrations, a, b, c, e. 



Books op the Bible 



Gn— Genesis 
Ex— Exodus 
Lv— Leviticus 
Nu— Numbers 
Dt— Deuteronomy 
Jos— Joshua 
J g— Judges 
Ru— Ruth 
1 S, 2 S -1 & 2 

Samuel 
1 K, 2 K— 1 & 2 Kings 
1 Ch, 2 Ch— 1 & 2 

Chronicles 



Old Testament 

Ezr— Ezra 
Neh— Nehemiah 
Est— Esther 
Job 

Ps— Psalms 
Pr— Proverbs 
Ec— Ecclesiastes 
SS— Solomon's 

Song 
Is— Isaiah 
Jer— Jeremiah 
La— Lamentations 
Ezek— Ezekiel 



Dn— Daniel 
Hos— Hosea 
Jl— Joel 
Am— Amos 
Ob— Obadiah 
Jon— Jonah 
Mic— Micah 
Nah— Nahum 
Hab— Habakkuk 
Zeph— Zephaniah 
Hag— Haggai 
Zee— Zechariah 
Mai— Malachi 



Mt— Matthew 
Mk— Mark 
Lk— Luke 
J n— John 
Ac— Acts 
Ro— Romans 
1 Co, 2 Co— 1 & 2 

Corinthians 
Gal— Galatians 



New Testament 

Eph— Ephesians 
Ph— Philippians 
Col— Colossians 
1 Th, 2 Th— 1 & 2 

Thessalonians 
1 Ti, 2 Ti— 1 & 2 

Timothy- 
Tit— Titus 
Philem— Philemon 



He— Hebrews 
Ja— James 
IP, 2 P— l<fe2Peter 
1 Jn, 2 Jn, 8 Jn— 

1, 2 & 3 John 
Jude 
Rev— Revelation 



For the above Abbreviations we follow "Hastings'* Bible 
Dictionary." 



li 



s^ 



Funeral of a Child 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. The "Words of Jesus 

And they brought young children to him, that 
he should touch them : and his disciples rebuked 
those that brought them. But when Jesus saw 
it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, 
Suffer the little children to come unto me, and 
forbid them not : for of such is the kingdom of 
God. Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall 
not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, 
he shall not enter therein. And he took them 
up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and 
blessed them. (Mk. 10 : 13-16.) 

At the same time came the disciples unto 
Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the king- 
dom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child 
unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 
and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be 
converted, and become as little children, ye shall 
not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whoso- 
ever therefore shall humble himself as this little 
child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of 
heaven, and whoso shall receive one such little 
child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall 
offend one of these little ones which believe in 

13 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

me, it were better for him that a mill-stone were 
hanged about his neck, and that he were 
drowned in the depth of the sea. 

Take heed that ye despise not one of these 
little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven 
their angels do always behold the face of my 
Father which is in heaven. 

Even so it is not the will of your Father 
which is in heaven, that one of these little ones 
should perish. (Mt. 18: 1-6, 10, 14.) 

2. The Voice of Weeping 

A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and 
bitter weeping ; Rachel weeping for her children 
refused to be comforted for her children, be- 
cause they were not. Thus saith the Lord; Re- 
frain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes 
from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, 
saith the Lord; and they shall come again from 
the land of the enemy. And there is hope in 
thine end saith the Lord, that thy children shall 
come again to their own border. (Jer. 31: 
15-17.) 

If I be bereaved of my children I am be- 
reaved. (Gen. 43 : 14.) 

The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; 
blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21.) 

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; 
for the first heaven and the first earth were 
passed away; and there was no more sea. And 
I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, com- 
ing down from God out of heaven, prepared as 

14 



FUNEEAL OF A CHILD 

a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard 
a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold the 
tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell 
with them, and they shall be his people, and 
God himself shall be with them, and be their 
God. And God shall wipe away all tears from 
their eyes; and there shall be no more death, 
neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there 
be any more pain: for the former things are 
passed away. 

And he showed me a pure river of water of 
life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the 
throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst 
of the street of it, and on either side of the 
river, was there the tree of life, which bare 
twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit 
every month: and the leaves of the tree were 
for the healing of the nations * * * 

And there shall be no night there: and they 
need no candle, neither light of the sun; for 
the Lord God giveth them light : and they shall 
reign for ever and ever. (Rev. 21:1-4; 22:1, 
2,5.) 

3. Resignation 

David therefore besought God for the child; 
and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night 
upon the earth. And the elders of his house 
arose, and went to him, to raise him up from 
the earth; but he would not, neither did he eat 
bread with them. And it came to pass on the 
seventh day, that the child died. And the serv- 

15 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ants of David feared to tell him that the child 
was dead : for they said, Behold, while the child 
was yet /alive, we spake unto him, and he would 
not hearken unto our voice : how will he then vex 
himself, if we tell him that the child is dead? 
But when David saw that his servants whis- 
pered, David perceived that the child was dead : 
therefore David said unto his servants, Is the 
child dead? And they said, He is dead. 

Then David arose from the earth, and washed 
and anointed himself, and changed his apparel 
and came into the house of the Lord and wor- 
shipped; then he came to his own house; and 
when he required they set bread before him and 
he did eat. Then said his servants unto him, 
What thing is this that thou hast done? Thou 
didst fast and weep for the child, while it was 
alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst 
rise and eat bread. And he said, While the 
child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I 
said who can tell whether God will be gracious 
to me that the child may live? But now he 
is dead wherefore should I fast? Cain I bring 
him back again ? I shall go to him, but he shall 
not return to me. (2 S. 12: 16-23.) 

Blessed be G-od, even the Father of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God 
of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our 
tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them 
which are in any trouble, by the comfort where- 
with we ourselves are comforted of God. (2 Co. 
1:3,4.) 

16 



FUNEEAL OF A CHILD 

4. It is Well 

And when the child was grown, it fell on a 
day, that he went out to his father to the reap- 
ers. And he said unto his father, My head, my 
head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his 
mother. And when he had taken him, and 
brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees 
till noon, and then died. And she went up, and 
laid him on the bed of the man of God, and 
shut the door upon him, and went out. And 
she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, 
I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of 
the asses, that I may run to the man of God, 
and come again. And he said, Wherefore wilt 
thou go to him to-day? It is neither new moon, 
nor Sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. 

Then she saddled an ass, and said to her serv- 
ant, Drive, and go forward ; slack not thy riding 
for me, except I bid thee. So she went and came 
unto the man of God to Mount Carmel. 

And it came to pass, when the man of God 
saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his 
servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite; 
Kun now I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto 
her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy 
husband? is it well with the child? And she 
answered, It is well. (2K. 4: 18-26.) 

For our light affliction, which is but for a 
moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding 
and eternal weight of glory. (2 Co. 4: 17.) 



17 



r 

PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 
Desolate— Is. 49 \ 21. Sept. Sel. 1. 

I have lost my children and am desolate. 

I. Loss of children makes desolate — 

1. Homes. 

2. Hearts. 

3. Future plans. 

4. All life on the earth. 

5. But many such- — see q. 1. I. c. 

II. But there is comfort and compensation — 

1. God too wise to make mistakes — too 
good to be unkind — we must love and 
trust him. 

2. Influence of the life still remains with 
us. 

3. Heaven is nearer and dearer — now. 
(Mt. 6:21.) 

4. They are not lost — but gone before. 

5. They are safe — and still ours — forever. 

6. We shall see them — be with them — and 
be no longer desolate. See q. 4 and 
14. I. e. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



The above space is for the Minister to make such additional 
notes as he may desire, or for obituary notices, etc. 

18 



V 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

Disconsolate — Jer. 31 : 15-17. Sept. Sel. 2. 

A voice ivas heard in Ramah, lamentation, and 
hitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children 
refused to be comforted for her children, be- 
cause they were not. Thus saith the Lord; Re- 
frain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes 
from tears: for thy ivork shall be rewarded, saith 
the Lord: and they shall come again from the 
land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine 
end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come 
again to their own border. 

I. Inconsolable grief for death of children — 

1. Natural. Gn. 42 : 36-38 ; Mk. 5 : 38, 39 ; 
Jn. 11:35. 

2. Common to all. q. 1. I. c. 

II. Divine command and comfort — 

1. Refrain. Mk. 5:39; Jer. 22:10; Lk. 
7:13; Jn. 20:13; 1 Th. 4:13, 14; Rev. 
21:4. q. 8. 

III. Thy work and sacrifice shall be re- 
warded — 

1. They shall come again from the land 
of the enemy — Death. Hos. 13 : 14 ; 
ICo. 15:54, 15:26. 

IV. Weeping may endure for a night, but 
joy cometh in the morning. Ps. 30 : 5. q. 10. 
2S. 12:23. 

—A. H. D. 



19 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Gathered Lilies — S. S. 6:2. Sept. Sel. 1. 

My beloved has gone down into his garden 
to gather lilies. 

Interesting comparison — lilies and babies — 

I. How pure, delicate, and beautiful they are ? 
How we loved, cared for them, and called them 
our own! So tender, sweet, pure, good, and 
beautiful. 

II. How easily sullied and soon faded! We 
hoped to keep them pure and good — perhaps a 
vain hope ; this wicked world is a poor place to 
maintain innocence and purity of life. 

III. The garden and the flowers both belong 
to God, the Master. "My beloved" — the lilies 
are his and ours. He will keep them pure and 
good forever. Mt. 19 : 14. I. b. 

IV. He gathers them early — transplants 
them to heaven — before beauty fades or sin de- 
stroys. I. d. q. 7. 

V. We shall see our gathered lilies again, 
q. 10. In perfect bloom and beauty in Paradise, 
q. 14. Beyond the blight of sin and sorrow — 
safe forever — adorning the temple and palace of 
God. "My beloved knows best." Mt. 18:10; 
1 K. 7 : 19. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



20 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

The Lambs— Is. 40: 11. Sept. Sel. 2. 

He shall gather the lambs with his arm, and 
carry them in his bosom. 

I. The Lord is our tender Shepherd. Ps. 23 ; 
Ezek. 34:23; Jn. 10:11; IP. 2:25; He. 13:20. 

1. He loves and cares for his sheep. Jn. 
10:14. 

2. He watches the fold. Jn. 10:11-15. 
But see q. 1 and I. c. He has other 
folds, but sometime they shall all be 
one. Jn. 10: 16. 

II. He carries the lambs in his bosom — Why ? 
I- Because he loves them and would keep 

them safely. Mk. 10: 16. I. a. 

2. To bring them to the upper fold, where 
they are forever secure, safe, and 
happy. I. e. 

3. That we may follow them. Mt. 6 : 21 ; 
2S. 12:23; Is. 11:6. I. f. q. 4. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



21 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

It is Well— 2 K. 4: 26. Sept. Sel. 4. 

Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say 
unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with 
thy husband? is it well with the child? And 
she answered, It is well. 

I. Circumstances: A child of promise — an 
only son — grows to boyhood ; with father in the 
field; sunstroke; sudden death. Devout mother 
seeks consolation of the man of God — Elisha. 
The question, Is it well? 

II. Sublime resignation — "It is well," she 
answered. 

1. Taken from ills, sorrows, afflictions. 

2. Taken from temptations, sin, all evil. 

3. It is well with the child. Mt. 18 : 10. 

III. Is it well with others? Mt. 18:2, 3. 
q. 2. q. 12. 

IV. By and hy all will be well — in heaven. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



22 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

Suffer them to Come — Mt. 19 : 14. Sept. Sel. 1. 

But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and for- 
bid them not, to come unto me: for of such is 
the kingdom of heaven. 

I. It is a divine command from a loving Lord. 
He knows what is best for them and us. Jesus 
loved the little ones. He exalted, dignified, and 
by his incarnation deified babyhood. Infants 
were thought but little of before Christ came. 
He rebuked his disciples for their indifference. 
Mt. 19 : 14 ; 18 : 6. There is a peculiar sadness 
in the death of children. Their going breaks 
many cords. 

II. But there is a bright side. Dying chil- 
dren go to Christ and heaven, q. 15. I. j. 

1. They are saved from cares and sor- 
rows of life. Mk. 10:14, 15. q. 4. 
I. a. 

2. They never taste the pangs of personal 
sin. Mt. 18 : 10, 14. q. 2. 

3. Their salvation is forever secure. Mt. 
18 : 10. q. 5, 8, 14, 16, 18. 

4. Parents should be submissive to the 
divine will. Job 1:21; 2 K. 4:26; 
2S. 12:23. 

— John A. Diekman. 

NOTES. 



23 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Our Angels in Heaven — Mt. 18 : 10. 

Sept. Sel. 1. 

For I say unto you, That in heaven their an- 
gels do always behold the face of my Father 
which is in heaven. 

I. The words of Jesus put the salvation of 
children beyond question. Mt. 18 : 14, 19 : 14. 
"Hell has no children; heaven has them all." 
q. 15. I. j. 

II. They shall be great there. Mt. 18:1-4. 
q. 2. Purity, not power, settles position there, 
q. 12. 

III. Though glorified, they belong to us. Our 
angels in heaven, q. 16. I. e. q. 17. It is for 
us to become like them that we may see them 
again in their glorified form. I. g. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



24 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

"Where the Treasure Is — Mt. 6:21. 

Sept. Sel. 2. 

For where your treasure is there will your 
heart be also. 

I. Children are their parents' priceless treas- 
ures. What are mioney, lands or jewels com- 
pared with them? q. 6. A baby asked, "Papa, 
what would you take for me?" Who could 
answer? When in danger all else is forgotten. 

II. When God takes them to heaven — 

1. They lose nothing of their value. Mt. 
18 : 10. q. 5. And they are still ours, 
q. 16. 

2. They are safe with him forever. Mt. 
6 : 19. q. 15. 

3. Hereafter heaven holds a treasure for 
us. q. 8. 

4. We will find our treasure by and by. 
I. j. Is. 11 : 6. q. 18. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



25 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

A Little Child Shall Lead Them — Is. 11 : 6. 

Sept. Sel. 3. 

And a little child shall lead them. 

I. The influence of a little child. "Who can 
tell its power — in the life, home, etc.? Tiny 
hands touch tender cords — rebuke discords and 
produce harmonies. God's evangels to us. 
Their ministries should be wholesome, helpful, 
and saving, q. 9, 2. 

II. Why, then, does God take them from us ? 
Better ask why he gives them to us. They have 
been with us and fulfilled their mission here. 
Better to love and lose than not to love at all. 
Develops tenderness, love, and sympathy. God 
gives more than he takes. Job 1 : 21. 

III. Our dead children may lead us to him 
and to heaven. 

1. We know they are in heaven. Mt. 
18:10, 19:14. 

2. Where our love centers, there we want 
to go. Mt. 6 : 21. I. f . 

3. What they could not do in life they 
may do in death. I. j. q. 17 or 18. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



26 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

I Shall Go to Him— 2 S. 12 : 23. Sept. Sel. 3. 

But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? 
can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, 
but he shall not return to me. 

I. Excessive grief both wrong and useless — 

1. Will not bring our loved ones back — 
better it is so — back to sorrow, pain, 
and death ; back to temptation, sin, and 
evil to come. 

2. When we have done our best — with 
love, medical science, and prayers — we 
should be resigned to the will of God. 
David's example, v. 20. 

II. We can go to them — best so — 

1. A blessed hope. 

2. But we must become like them. Mt. 
18:3; Is. 11:6. 

III. This should lessen sorrow and increase 
hope — 

1. Heaven holds something for us. Mt. 
6:21. I.e. 

2. We shall see, know, and be forever 
with them. 

3. Where sickness, sorrow, pain, and 
death are unknown. 

notes. 



27 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

SUGGESTED THEMES AND TEXTS 

A Child of Prayer.— 1 S. 1 : 27 ; Lk. 1 : 13 ; 2 K. 

4:14-17. 
A Little Child Shall Lead Them.— Is. 11: 6; Mk. 

10:15. 
A Child Called.— 1 S. 3 : 8 ; Mt. 18 : 2 ; Mt. 2 : 15. 
All is Well.— Mk. 7 : 37 ; 2 K. 4 : 26 ; Job 1 : 21. 
Babes Praising God.— Mt. 21 : 15, 16 ; Ps. 8 : 2. 
Can a Mother Forget 1— Is. 49 : 15 ; 1 S. 1 : 28. 
Dead Flowers.— 1 S. 2 : 33 ; SS. 6 : 2 ; 1 P. 1 : 24. 
Death in Every House.— Ex. 12:30; Jer. 9:21. 
Desolate.— Is. 49 : 21 ; Jer. 10 : 20, 31 : 15-17. 
Disconsolate. — Jer. 31 : 15-17 ; Is. 49 : 21 ; Jer. 

10:20. 
Died on Mother's Knees.— 2 K. 4: 18-26. 
First Fruits.— Rev. 14: 1-5; Zee. 8: 5; 1 Co. 15: 

20. 
Given to God.— Gn. 22 : 12 ; 1 S. 1 : 28 ; Lk. 2 : 22. 
Gathered Lilies.— SS. 6 : 2 ; 1 S. 2 : 33 ; 1 P. 1 : 24. 
God's Will Concerning Children.— Mt. 18:14, 

Mk. 10:14. 
Greatest of All.— Mt. 18 : 1-4 ; Ps. 131 : 1, 2. 
Giving and Taking.— Job 1:21; 2 K. 4:26. 
Heaven Full of Children.— Zee. 8 : 5 ; Mt. 18 : 10. 
It is Well— 2 K. 4 : 26 ; Mk. 7 : 37 ; Job 1 : 21. 
I Shall Go to Him.— 2 S. 12 : 23 ; Mt. 18 : 2-10. 
Like a Little Child.— Mt. 18:3; Mk. 10 : 15. 
Lambs in His Arms. — Is. 40 : 11 ; Mk. 10 : 16. 
My Jewels.— Mai. 3 : 17 ; Mk. 10 : 14 ; Mt. 18 : 10. 
No More Death.— Rev. 21:4; 1 Co. 15:26; Is. 

25:8. 



28 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

Of Such is the Kingdom.— Mt. 19:14; Mk. 10: 

14. 
Our Angels in Heaven.— Mt. 18:10; Eev. 14: 

1-5. 
Refused to be Comforted.— Gn. 37 : 34, 35 • Jer. 

31:15;Mt. 2:17, 18. 
Resignation.— 1 S. 3 : 18 ; Job 1 : 21 ; Lk. 22 : 42. 
Suffer Them to Come.— Mt. 19:14; Mk. 10:14. 
Safe In the Arms of Jesus. — Mk. 10 : 16 ; Is. 

40:11. 
The Ministry of Childhood.— Isa. 11:6; Mt. 

18:4. 
The Child is Not— Gn. 37:30; Jer. 10:20. 
The Widow's Child.— 1 K. 17 : 17 ; Lk. 7 : 12. 
Thou Shalt Know Hereafter.— Jn. 13:7; Ps. 

97:2; 2 K. 4:26. 
They Shall Come Again.— Jer. 31:16; 1 Th. 

4:14; 2S. 12:33. 
Vision of God's Face.— Mt. 18:10; Rev. 22:4. 
Voice Out of the Cloud.— Mt. 17 : 5 ; Ps. 97 : 2. 
Weeping at Night, Joy in Morning. — Ps. 30:5; 

Am. 5:8; Rev. 22:5. 
Without Fault— Rev. 14:5; Mt. 18: 10, 19: 14; 

Mk. 10 : 14. 
What Manner of Child.— Lk. 1:66, 2:19; He. 

11 : 23. 
Where the Treasure is.— Mt. 6 : 21, 18 : 10, 19 : 14. 



29 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

A PRAYER 

Our Father of love, of great compassion and 
of tender mercy, we come to Thee at this time, 
not because of any concern for the soul of this 
dear child lying here in the dreamless sleep of 
death — for it is eternally safe with Thee — but 
we come to Thee for these, thy servants, whose 
hearts are broken with the consciousness of their 
grief and loss. Do Thou behold their sorrow 
and desolation, and help Thou them in this their 
time of need. 

Forgive us if, in the hour of our darkness, we 
have for one moment doubted either Thy wis- 
dom or Thy love. We know that Thou art too 
wise to make mistakes and too good to be un- 
kind. May we see light in Thy light. 

We would give Thee thanks for this little 
life, which has called forth so many ministra- 
tions of love, service, and sacrifice, and bound 
us to it with cords of tenderest affection. Let 
us not forget its sweet lessons of love, innocence, 
and purity. May this little messenger of God 
have accomplished its mission to all hearts ! 

Grant that these bereaved ones may be soothed 
(and cofaiforted to-day, and that their lives may 
be sweetened and softened by this loss, and give 
to them the grace of submission to Thy will and 
wisdom, and an increased devotion to Thee and 
to Thy service. And let us comfort our hearts 
with the hope that if these little ones can not 
return to us, we may go to them. All we ask 
is for Jesus' sake. Amen. 

30 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

QUOTATIONS 
1. 

There is no flock, however watched and tended, 

But one dead lamb is there: 
There is no fireside, howsoe'er defended, 

But has one vacant chair. 

The air is full of farewells for the dying 

And mournings for the dead, 
The heart of Rachel, for her children crying, 
Will not be comforted. 

— Longfellow. 
2. 

"We need love's tender lessons taught 

As only weakness can ; 
God hath his small interpreters ; 
The child must teach the man. 

Of such thy kingdom ! — Teach thou us, 

O Master most divine, 
To feel the deep significance 

Of these wise words of thine ! 

The haughty eye shall seek in vain 

What innocence beholds; 
No cunning finds the key of heaven, 

No strength its gate unfolds. 

Alone to guileness and to love 

This gate shall open fall; 
The mind of pride is nothingness, 

The childlike heart is all! 

— Whittier. 

31 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

3. 

All is of God that is, and is to be; 
And God is good. Let this suffice us still, 
Resting in childlike trust upon His will 
Who moves to His great ends unthwarted by 
the ill. 



4. 



Wherefore should I make my moan 
Now the darling child is dead ? 

He to rest is early gone, 
He to Paradise is fled. 

I shall go to him, but he 

Never shall return to me. 

God forbids his longer stay, 
God recalls His precious loan. 

He hath taken him away 
From my bosom to His own. 

Surely what He wills is best ; 

Happy in His will I rest. 

Faith cries out, "It is the Lord," 
Let Him do what seems Him good. 

Be Thy holy name adored. 
Take the gift a while bestowed. 

Take the child no longer mine; 

Thine he is, forever Thine. 

— Charles Wesley. 



32 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 



A host of angels flying. 

Through cloudless skies impelled, 

Upon the earth beheld 
A pearl of beauty lying, 

Worthy to glitter bright 

In heaven's vast hall of light. 

They spread their pinions o'er it, 

That little pearl which shoaie 

With luster all its own; 
And then on high they bore it, 

Where glory has its birth — 

But left the shell on earth. 

—Dirk Smith, tr. H. S. VanDyke. 

6. 

Pointing to such, well might Cornelia say, 
When the rich casket shone in bright array, 
" These are my jewels!" Well of such as he, 
When Jesus spake, well might His language be, 
"Suffer these little ones to come to Me." 

— Samuel Rogers. 

7. 

There is a reaper whose name is death, 

And with his sickle keen, 
He reaps the bearded grain at a breath 

And the flow r ers which grow between: 
Shall I have nought that is fair ? saith he ; 

Have nought but the bearded grain? 
Though the breath of these flowers is sweet to me, 

I will give them all back again. 

3 33 



Af 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

He gazed at the flowers with tearful eyes, 

He kissed their drooping leaves — 
It was for the Lord of Paradise 

He bound them into sheaves. 
My Lord hath need of these flowers gay, 

The reaper said, and smiled; 
Dear token of the earth are they, 

Where he was once a child. 

They all shall bloom in fields of light, 

Transplanted by my care : 
And saints upon their garments white 

These sacred blossoms wear. 
And the mother gave in tears and pain 

The flowers she most did love; 
She knew she would find them all again 

In fields of light above. 

0, not in cruelty, not in wrath, 

The reaper came that day ; 
'T was an angel visited this green earth 
And took the flowers away. 

— Longfellow. 
8. 
We gazed with chastened feeling on 

The spoiler's work. 'T was but the casket 
there ; 
For well we knew the precious gem had gone 
To deck the Saviour's sparkling diadem. 

9. 

Better be driven out from among men than 
to be disliked by children. — Dana. 

34 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

10. 

She thought our good-night kiss was given, 
And like a lily her life did close ; 
Angels uncurtained that repose, 
And the next waking dawned in heaven. 

— Massey. 

11. 

If thou shalt be in heart a child — 
Forgiving, tender, meek, and mild — 
Though with light stains of earth defiled, 
soul, it shall be well! 

— Wm. Morris. 
12. 

The smallest children are nearest to God, as 
the smallest planets are nearest the sun. 

— Richter. 
13. 

It is as natural to die as to be born, and to 
the little infant, perhaps, the one is as painful 
as the other. — Bacon. 



14. 



There is no death ! The stars go down 
To rise upon some fairer shore, 

And bright in heaven's jewelled crown 
They shine for evermore. 

There is no death! An angel form 
Walks o 'er the earth with silent tread ; 

He bears our best loved things away, 
And then we call them "dead." 

He leaves our hearts all desolate; 
He plucks our fairest, sweetest flowers ; 
35 



V 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Transplanted into bliss, they now 

Adorn immortal bowers. 

— Lord Lytton. 
J. o. 

Hell has no children. Heaven has them all. 

— Yatman. 



16 



A child of mine, a child of bliss; 
Why, therefore, weep for joy like this? 



17. Too thick in every graveyard 

The little hillocks lie, 
But every hillock represents 

An angel in the sky. 
18. 

Little children, little children 

Who love their Redeemer 

Are the jewels, precious jewels, 

His loved and his own. 

Like the stars of the morning, 
His bright crown adorning 
They shall shine in their beauty 
Bright gems for his crown. 
19. 
How brief the stay, as beautiful as fleeting, 

The time that baby came with us to dwell ; 
Just long enough to give a happy greeting, 
Just long enough to bid us all farewell ! 

Death travels down the thickly settled highway, 

At shining marks they say he loves to aim ; 
How did he find, far down our lonely by-way, 
Our little one who died without a name? 

— Alonzo Rice. 
36 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a, 

A father told his little one to "go to sleep," 

but the little fellow was full of questions, and 

asked his father, "Papa, where do I go when 

I go to sleep?" The father could not answer 

the strange question, and so asked the child 

where he thought he went. The little fellow 

promptly replied, "I think I go into the arms 

of Jesus." 

b. 

"Who plucked that flower?" asked the gar- 
dener, in anger, as he saw the broken stem of 
a rare and choice flower upon which he had 
bestowed great care. "It was I," said the Mas- 
ter, and the gardener held his peace. 

I 

c. 

Kisagotami's child died. She went to Buddha 
and asked for help. He bade her bring him a 
handful of mustard-seed from a house where 
no death had occurred. But when she went from 
house to house she found that death had always 
preceded her. Then she learned that sorrow 
came to others as well as herself, and she buried 
her child in a wood. 

d. 

God cultivates flowers, seemingly only for their 
exquisite beauty and fragrance. For when, 
bathed in soft sunshine, they burst into blossom, 
then the divine hand takes them from the earthly 

37 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

fields to keep in crystal vases in the deathless 
mansions above. Thus little children die — some 
in the sweet bud, some in the fuller blossom; 
but never too early to make heaven fairer and 
sweeter with their immortal bloom. 

e. 

You have lost a child? No, she is not lost 
to you who is found in Christ; she is not sent 
away, but only sent before. Like a star, which, 
when going out of sight, does not die or vanish, 
but shines in another hemisphere — she shines in 
heaven, and may light you thitherward. 

f. 

A kind-hearted shepherd wanted his sheep to 
cross a stream to better pastures. When he 
found that he could not persuade the timid 
creatures to go into the cold and turbulent 
waters, he lifted a lamb to his shoulders and 
carried it across, and the sheep willingly fol- 
lowed. 

g. 

' 'She died," said Mary, "and was buried in 
the ground, where the trees grow." "The cold 
ground?" said Kate, shuddering. "No, in the 
warm ground," replied Mary, "where the ugly 
little seeds are turned into beautiful flowers, and 
good people turn into angels and fly away to 
heaven." — A child's idea of death. 



38 



FUNERAL OF A CHILD 

h. 

Blessed be childhood, which brings down some- 
thing of heaven into the midst of our rough 
earthliness. — Amiel. 

i. 

A fisherman's child, who had been in the habit 
of placing a light in the window at night to 
guide her father home, lay dying. Turning to 
her father, she said, "Papa, I will place a light 
in the window of heaven for you." For many 
of us cherub hands have placed a light in 
heaven 's window. May we follow its gleam ! 

J. 

"0, papa! where are the dewdrops gone?" 
asked a child, returning from a morning walk. 
"Yonder," answered the father, as he pointed 
to a cloud crimson with the beauty of the sun- 
light; "and see the pathway on which they 
traveled?" and he pointed to the bars of light 
reaching earthward from the sun. 



39 



Funeral of a Young Person 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. General 

Remember now thy Creator in the days of 
thy youth; while the evil days come not, nor the 
years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have 
no pleasure in them. — Mitt 12:1. 

As for man, his days are as grass : as a flower 
of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind 
passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place 
thereof shall know it no more. — Ps. 103 : 15, 16. 

In the morning sow thy seed, and in the even- 
ing withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest 
not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or 
whether they both shall be alike good. . . . 

Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and 
put away evil from thy flesh : for childhood and 
youth are vanity. — Ec. 11 : 6, 10. 

Nevertheless I will remember my covenant 
with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will 
establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. — 
Ezek. 16 : 60. 

Now my days are swifter than a post: they 
flee away, they see no good. They are passed 
away as the swift ships : as the eagle that hasteth 
to the prey.— Job 9 : 25, 26. 

40 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do. do it with 
thy might ; for there is no work, nor device, nor 
knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whither 
thou goest. — Ec. 9 : 10. 

So teach us to number our days, that we may 
apply our hearts unto wisdom. Return, O Lord, 
how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy 
servants. satisfy us early with thy mercy; 
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. 
Make us glad according to the days wherein 
thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we 
have seen evil. Let thy work appear unto thy 
servants, and thy glory unto their children. 

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be 
upon us: and establish thou the work of our 
hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands 
establish thou it.— Ps. 90: 12-17. 

2. For a Girl 

And behold, there cometh one of the rulers 
of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and when he 
saw him, he fell at his feet, and besought him 
greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the 
point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy 
hands on her, that she may be healed; and she 
shall live. . . . 

"While he yet spake, there came from the ruler 
of the synagogue 's house certain w T hich said, Thy 
daughter is dead : why troublest thou the Master 
any further? 

As soon as Jesus heard the word that was 
spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, 
Be not afraid, only believe. And he suffered no 

41 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and 
John the brother of James. 

And he cometh to the house of the ruler of 
the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them 
that wept and wailed greatly. And when he was 
come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this 
ado, and weep ? the damsel is not dead, but sleep- 
eth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when 
he had put them all out, he taketh the father 
and the mother of the damsel, and them that 
were with him, and entereth in where the damsel 
was lying. And he took the damsel by the 
hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi: which 
is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, 
arise. And straightway the damsel arose and 
walked. For she was of the age of twelve years. 
And they were astonished with a great astonish- 
ment.— Mk. 5 : 22, 23, 35-42. 

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: 
for the first heaven and the first earth were 
passed away; and there was no more sea. And 
I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, com- 
ing down from God out of heaven, prepared as 
a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard 
a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the 
tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell 
with them, and they shall be his people, and God 
himself shall be with them, and be their God. 
And God shall wipe away all tears from their 
eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow, nor cr3'ing, neither shall there be any 
more pain; for the former things are passed 
away. — Rev. 21 : 1-4. 

42 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

3. For a Boy or Young Man 

In the morning sow thy seed, and in the even- 
ing withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest 
not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or 
whether they both shall be alike good. 

Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing 
it is for the eyes to behold the sun: but if a 
man live many years and rejoice in them all; 
yet let him remember the days of darkness; for 
they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity. 

Rejoice, young man, in thy youth; and let 
thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, 
and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the 
sight of thine eyes : but know thou, that for all 
these things God will bring thee into judgment. 
Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and 
put away evil from thy flesh : for childhood and 
youth are vanity. — Ec. 11 : 6-10. 

Man that is born of a woman is of few days, 
and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a 
flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a 
shadow, and continueth not. — Job 14 : 1, 2. 

For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of 
man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth 
and the flower thereof falleth away. — 1 P. 1 : 24. 

And it came to pass the day after, that he 
went into a city called Nain; and many of his 
disciples went with him, and much people. Now 
when he came nigh to the gate of the city, be- 
hold, there was a dead man carried out, the only 
son of his mother, and she was a widow: and 
much people of the city was with her. And 

43 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on 
her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came 
and touched the bier: and they that bare him 
stood still. And he said. Young man, I say 
unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, 
and began to speak. And he delivered him to 
his mother. — -Lk. 7 : 11-15. 

And Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrec- 
tion, and the life : he that believeth in me, though 
he were dead yet shall he live : And whosoever 
liveth and believeth in me shall never die. — 
Jn. 11 : 25, 26. 

4. For a Young Woman 

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened 
unto ten virgins, which took their lamps and 
went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five 
of them were wise and five were foolish. They 
that were foolish took their lamps and took no 
oil with them: But the wise took oil in their 
vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom 
tarried they all slumbered and slept. 

And at midnight there was a cry made, Be- 
hold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet 
him. Then all those virgins arose and trimmed 
their lamps. And the foolish said unto the 
wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are 
gone out. But the wise answered, Not so; lest 
there be n,ot enough for us and you: but go ye 
rather to them that sell and buy for yourselves. 
And while they went to buy the bridegroom 
came; and they that were ready went in with 

44 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

him to the marriage; and the door was shut. 
Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, 
Lord, Lord, open to ns. But he answered and 
said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 

Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day 
nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. 
— Mt. 25:1-13. 

Let not your heart be troubled : ye believe in 
God, believe also in me. In my Father's house 
are many mansions: if it were not so I would 
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will 
come again and receive you unto myself; that 
where I am, there ye may be also. ... I 
will not leave you comfortless: I will come to 
you. Yet a little while and the world seeth 
me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye 
shall live also. . . . 

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto 
you: not as the world giveth give I unto you. 
Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be 
afraid.— Jn. 14:1-3, 18, 19, 27. 



45 



^ 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 
Sleep and Death— Mk. 5 : 39. Sept. Sel. 2. 

The damsel is not dead, hut sleepeth. 

1. Sleep is the chosen term of our Lord to 
describe the state of death — "Lazarus sleepeth," 
the "maid sleepeth." Such a strong figure im- 
plies a likeness — qualities of one are essentials 
of the other, q. 20. Early Christians used 
term "sleep." Ac. 7:60; 1 Co. 15:6; 1 Th. 
4:13; 2P. 3:4; 1 Co. 15:51. 

2. Reason and Revelation teach that sleep and 
death are alike in the following particulars: 

a. Both render the subject unconscious to 
human conditions of time and place. 

b. Both are assuredly followed by awak- 
ened life. 

c. Both have their natural rational place 
in the subject and make him more than 
he could be without them. 

d. While both render the subject uncon- 
scious to experiences we think so essen- 
tial to life, they bring him again to the 
fullest fellowship of life as though they 
had not been interrupted, q. 11. 

3. "Why, then, in the eyes of faith should not 
one be as dear as the other ? q. 13. I. b and e. 

— L. C. Bentley. 



46 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

Be Ready— Mt. 24 : 44. Sept. Sel. 3 or 4. 

Be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye 
think not the Son of man cometh. 

1. Death in youth seems unnatural. Nature 
has her seasons — seedtime and harvest, bud and 
bloom, blossom and fruitage, opening bud and 
falling leaf, summer and winter. Not so death. 

2. Death has all seasons, q. 8. Infant of 
days, man of years, youth and maiden, man and 
woman — no sex is spared, no age exempt, q. 7, 
9, and 21. I. a. 

3. The time of death is unknown — day and 
hour. Mt. 25 : 13. A wise provision. Fore- 
knowledge is withheld, but memory given — why ? 
Life happier, activities more intense, plans 
bigger and better than if we knew. 

4. But uncertainty urges readiness. Youth 
the time for joy. Yes, but readiness for death 
should only increase the joy of life. Ps. 90 : 14 ; 
Ec. 11 : 9. 

5. What is necessary to "Be ready ?" Faith 
in Christ. Jn. 3 : 3, 14, 15. Knowledge of sins 
forgiven. Rev. 21 : 27. Doing the will of God. 
Mt. 24 : 42-51, 25 : 31-46. I. f and h. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



47 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

The Web of Life— Job 7:6. Sept. Sel. 1 or 3. 

My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle. 

1. Life variously symbolized in Bible: A 
vapor, a shadow, a sleep, a dream, a swift ship, 
a flying eagle, a swift post, dying grass, fading 
flower, a tale told, etc. — -all fleeting and transi- 
tory, q. 7, 8. I. d. Flying shuttle — same lesson. 

2. The web of life — growing under flying 
shuttle of days, months, years, forming designs 
beautiful or otherwise, according to pattern fol- 
lowed, ours or God's. I. c. Like curtains of 
the tabernacle, they should be according to God's 
plan. Ex. 35:25. 

3. Suddenly the thread is broken and loom 
stops. Shall the design ever be completed ? Yes, 
if God's. I. i. God's work is never half done — 
always "good," complete, perfect. 

4. Wait till God's work is finished and his 
designs completed. He makes no mistakes and 
spoils no materials, q. 14. I. j and k. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



48 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

An Only Son.— Am. 8:10; Lk. 7 : 12 ; Jer. 6 : 26 ; 

Gn. 22:16. 
Behold, the Bridegroom Cometh. — Mt. 25 : 6, 13 ; 

Am. 4:12. 
Broken Staff.— Jer. 48 : 17 ; Job 21 : 23, 17 : 11. 
Blessed Are They That Mourn.— Mt. 5:4; Is. 

61 : 2, 3. 
Crown of Life.— Ja. 1 : 12 ; 1 P. 5 : 4 ; 2 Ti. 4 : 8. 
Death of a Daughter.— Mk. 5 : 35 ; Jg. 11 : 40. 
Death of a Son.— 2 S. 18 : 33 ; Lk. 7 : 12. 
Death of a Young Man.— Jer. 9:21, 48:17; Is. 

40:30. 
God's Covenant with Youth— Ezek. 16: 60; Mt. 

19 : 20. 
God's Gifts Withdrawn.— Job 1:21; Ps. 127: 

3-5. 
God's Judgments Right.— Gn. 18: 25; Jn. 13: 7. 
God of All Comfort.— 2 Co. 1 : 3, 4 ; Is. 51 : 12. 
Hope Set Before Us.— He. 6 : 18 ; 1 P. 1 : 3 ; He. 

6:19. 
Hidden Providences. — Jn. 13 : 7 ; Ps. 97 : 2. 
Honorable Youth.— 1 Ti. 4:12; Ac. 26:4; Mt. 

19 : 20 ; Dn. 1 : 8. 
He is Our Peace.— Eph. 2:14; Jn. 14:27; Ps. 

37 : 37. 
It is I.— Mt. 14:27; Is. 41:10, 13, 14. 
In Account with God.— Ec. 11 : 9 ; Lk. 16 : 2 ; Ro. 

14:12. 
In the Flower of Age.— 1 S. 2 : 33 ; Job 14 : 2. 

4 49 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Plans Broken.— Job 17:11; Ja. 4:13, 14. 
Polished Stones.— Ps. 144:12; IK. 7:22. 
Prepare to Meet God. — Am. 4 : 12 ; Jos. 1 : 11. 
Precious Ointment.— Ee. 7 : 1 ; Pr. 22 : 1. 
Rejoice in Youth.— Ec. 11:9, 12:1; Ps. 90:14. 
Remember Thy Creator.— Ec. 12:1; Ps. 90:14. 
Ready.— Mt. 25:10; Lk. 12:40; 2 Ti. 4:6. 
Strength and Beauty.— 1 K. 7 : 22 ; Pr. 20 : 29. 
Son Surrendered.— Gn. 22 : 12 ; Jn. 3 : 16. 
Seek Him.— Am. 5 : 8 ; Is. 55 : 6 ; Ps. 27 : 8. 
The Dew of Youth.— Ps. 110: 3; Is. 26: 19. 
The Guide of Youth.— Jer. 3 : 4 ; Pr. 2 : 17. 
The Vanity of Youth.— Ec. 11 : 10 ; Ps. 39 : 5 ; Is. 

40:30. 
The Yoke in Youth.— La. 3 : 27 ; Mt. 11 : 29, 30. 
The Passing Wind.— Ps. 103 : 16 ; Job 7:7; Is. 

32:2. 
Thy Brother Shall Rise Again.— Jn. 11 : 23, 25. 
The Fading Flower.— IP. 1:24; Ps. 103:15. 
Thy Son Liveth.— 1 K. 17:23; He. 11:35; Lk. 

7:15. 
The End.— Ezek. 7:6; Jer. 5:31; Nu. 23:10; 

Ps. 37 : 37. 
Watch.— Mt. 24:42; Mk. 13:37; 1 Th. 5:6; 

Rev. 16:15. 
Weep Not.— Lk. 7:13; Jn. 20:13; Mk. 5:39; 

ITh. 4:13. 
White Robes.— Rev. 7:13-15, 3:4, 5, 18, 6.11. 



50 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

A PRAYER 

Almighty God, standing in the presence of 
death and smitten by its power, we confess our 
helplessness and fly to thee for refuge. 

We rejoice in thy fatherly tenderness. Thou 
art strength for our weakness, comfort for our 
distress, the answer to all our wild questionings. 

We thank thee for thy gospel with its message 
of hope, its light flashed into the darkness of 
the tomb, and its promise of a life where dark- 
ness and death never come. We thank thee for 
the Christ sent to bring life and immortality 
to light. We thank thee for the Holy Spirit 
sent to be the abiding Comforter of every sad- 
dened home and sorrowing heart. 

We pray for thy comforting presence in the 
house of death. Where grief abounds may thy 
grace much more abound. Comfort every one 
who mourns. Give hope where despair would 
palsy the heart. In moments of weakness make 
known the strength of thine arm. Be a com- 
panion in hours of loneliness. When the way 
is dark let the star of thy love the brighter 
shine. In these stricken lives may faith cling 
close to thee, and by submission to thy benignant 
will may these sorrowing ones be sustained in 
their loss, be safely led through life's unknown 
ways, and brought at last to enjoy eternal fel- 
lowship with all whom they have loved and lost 
awhile. Amen. — J. N. Greene. 



51 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

L QUOTATIONS 

Then fell upon the house a sudden gloom, 
A shadow on those features fair and thin ; 

And softly from that hushed and darkened room 
Two angels issued, where but one went in. 

_ — Longfellow. 

Come, let the burial rite be read, 

The funeral song be sung! 
An anthem for the queenliest dead 

That ever died so young — 
A dirge for her the doubly dead 

In that she died so young. 

3. - P ° e - 

Death lies on her, like an untimely frost 
Upon the sweetest flower of all the field. 

— Eomeo and Juliet. 

Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath, 

Hath had no power yet upon thy beauty; 

Thou art not conquer 'd; beauty's ensign yet 

Is crimson on thy lips, and in thy cheeks, 

And death's pale flag is not advanced there. 

. — Romeo and Juliet. 

4. 

Death has made 

His darkness beautiful with thee. 

— Tennyson. 



5. 



Dust, to its narrow house beneath ! 

Soul, to its place on high ! 
They that have seen thy look in death 
No more may fear to die. 

— Mrs. Hemans. 
52 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

6. 

There is a land where beauty can not fade, 

Nor sorrow dim the eye; 
Where true love shall not droop nor be dismayed, 
And none shall ever die. 

— Mary Howitt. 
7. 

Death rides on every passing breeze, , 
He lurks in every flower. 

— Heber. 
8. 

Leaves have their time to fall, 
And flowers to wither at the north w r ind's breath, 

And stars to set — -but all, 
Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death! 

— Mrs. Hemans. 
9. 

0, what hadst thou to do with cruel Death, 
Who wast so full of life, or Death with thee, 
That thou shouldst die before thou hadst grown 
old? — Longfellow. 

10. 

^ But when the sun in all his state 

Illumed the eastern skies, 
She passed through Glory's morning gate, 
And walked in Paradise. 

— Aldrich. 
11. 
On the cold cheek of Death smiles and roses are 

blending, 
And beauty immortal awakes from the tomb. 

— Beattie. 
53 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

12. 

So coldly sweet, so deadly fair, 
We start, for soul is wanting there. 

— Byron. 

13. 

Thank God for Death: bright thing for dreary 

name, 
We wrong with mournful flowers her pure, still 
brow. 

— Susan Coolidge. 
14. 

Our times are in his hand 
Who saith, A whole I planned — 
Youth shows but half ; trust God : see all, 
Nor be afraid. 

15. 

Born unto beauty 

And born into bloom, 
Victor immortal 

O'er death and the tomb. 

16. 

Yet glowest thou fresh with every living grace, 

No mark of pain or violence of face, 

Rosey and fair: as Phoebus' silver bow, 

Dismissed thee gently to the shades below. 

— Homer's Iliad. 

17. 

Standing with reluctant feet 
Where the brook and river meet. 

— Longfellow. 

54 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

18. 

How beautiful is youth! how bright it gleams 
With illusions, aspirations, and dreams ! 
Book of beginnings, story without end, 
Each maid heroine, and each man a friend ! 

— Longfellow. 
19. 

The youth of the soul is everlasting, and eter- 
nity is youth. — Richter. 

20. 

How wonderful is death, death and his brother 
sleep ! — Shelley. 

21. 

Youth is not rich in time: It may be poor; 
Part with as with money, sparingly; pay 
No moment, but in purchase of its worth, 
And what its worth is ask deathbeds, they can 
tell. — Young. \ 

22. 

The flowers in deathless bloom 
The Savior gives us, not beyond the tomb, 
But here and now, on earth some glimpse is given 
Of the joys which wait us through the gates of 
heaven. 



55 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 
ILLUSTRATIONS 

d. 

The Circassions are said to divide their life 
between sin and devotion, dedicating their youth 
to wickedness and their old age to repentance. 

b. 

She was dead. There upon her little bed she 
lay at rest. The solemn stillness was no marvel 
now. She was dead — no sleep so calm, so free 
from trace of pain, so fair to look upon. She 
seemed a creature fresh from the hand of God, 
and waiting for the breath of life, not one who 
had lived and suffered death. Dear, gentle, 
patient, noble Nell w r as dead. — Dickens. 

e. 

A certain artist was painting a picture of 
The Last Supper. Desiring a model for the 
face of St. John, the divine, he sought every- 
where a devout and spiritually-minded face. At 
last he found his ideal and painted the face. 
Years passed, and the picture was yet unfin- 
ished. He was now looking everywhere for a 
face bad enough to fittingly portray the char- 
acter of Judas Iscariot, the arch traitor. One 
day he found a face representing greed, craft, 
covetousness, and murder. He secured his model, 
but was astonished to find that it was the same 
person who years before had been his model 
for St. John. Sin had done its work. — A. H. D. 

56 



FUNERAL OF A YOUNG PERSON 

d. 

A blacksmith, when he pulled the iron out of 
the fire, used to call to his son: " Quick! Quick! 
Now or never." So with youthful character. 

e. 

"I am getting sleepy now," said a sweet- 
faced girl to her pastor on her death-bed, and 
she fell asleep in Jesus. — A. H. D. 

f. 

A youth had been crushed by a log rolling 
upon him in the lumber-woods. In his death- 
agony he cried, "Boys, won't somebody pray 
for me?" but nobody could pray. Turning his 
face to the wall, he said, "0 mother, if you 
were here you would pray for your boy." In 
a moment he said, "0 boys, it 's getting so 
dark, so dark," and so he died.— A. H. D. 

A young captain in the English army found, 
after the battle, that his Bible had been struck 
by a musket-ball, which penetrated to the text 
Ec. 11: 9, "Rejoice, young man, in thy youth, 
etc. . . . but know for all these things God 
will bring thee into judgment." His Bible 
saved his life, and this providence was the 
means of saving his soul. — Anon. 



57 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

h. 

A youthful soldier lay dying. He requested 
the passage read to him, " Peace I leave with 
you," etc. When it was done, he said, "I have 
that peace," and so he died. — Anon. 



Would a wise and loving Father begin such 
a work as this (a youthful character) and leave 
it unfinished? Believe it not — believe, rather, 
in life perfected, love perfected, and character 
perfected in a better world than this. — A. H. D. 

J. 

If we live on this earth only, if our thoughts 
are hemmed in by the narrow horizon of this 
life, then we lose indeed those whom death takes 
from us. But it is death itself which teaches 
us that there is a Beyond; we are lifted up 
and see a new world far beyond what we have 
seen before. — Max Mueller. 

k. 

Here is the broken casket, but God has in his 
own keeping the invaluable gem — the soul. — 
A. H. D. 



58 



Funeral of a Person in Middle 

Life 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. Sudden Death 

As for man, his days are as grass : as a flower 
of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind 
passeth over it and it is gone; and the place 
thereof shall know it no more. — Ps. 103 : 15, 16. 

Lord, make me to know mine end and the 
measure of my days, what it is; that I may 
know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made 
my days as an hand-breadth ; and mine age is as 
nothing before thee: verily, every man at his 
best state is altogether vanity. — Ps. 39 : 4, 5. 

Go to now, ye that say, To-day or to-morrow 
we will go into such a city and continue there 
a year, and buy and sell, and get gain : Whereas 
ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For 
what is your life? It is even a vapor, that 
appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth 
away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord 
will, we shall live and do this or that. — Ja. 4: 
13-15. 

59 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Surely every man walketh in a vain show: 
surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth 
up riches and knoweth not who shall gather 
them. 

Hear my prayer, Lord, and give ear unto 
my ery; hold not thy peace at my tears: for 
I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as 
all my fathers were. spare me, that I may 
recover strength, before I go hence and be no 
more.— Ps. 39 : 6, 12, 13. 

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with 
thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor 
knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave whither 
thou goest. — Ec. 9:10. 

2. Frailty and Brevity of Life 

Man that is born of a woman is of few days 
and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a 
flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a 
shadow and continueth not. And dost thou open 
thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me 
into judgment with thee? 

"Who can bring a clean thing out of an un- 
clean? Not one. Seeing his days are deter- 
mined, the number of his months are with thee, 
thou hast appointed his bounds that he can not 
pass: turn from him that he may rest, till he 
shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day. 

For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, 
that it will sprout again, and that the tender 
branch thereof will not cease, though the root 

60 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

thereof wax old in the earth and the stock thereof 
die in the ground ; yet through the scent of water 
it will bud and bring forth boughs like a plant. 

But man dieth and wasteth away : yea, man 
giveth up the ghost, and where is he? As the 
waters fail from the sea and the flood decayeth 
and dryeth up: so man lieth down and riseth 
not : till the heavens be no more, they shall not 
awake, nor be raised out of their sleep. 

that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, 
that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy 
wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me 
a set time and remember me ! 

If a man die, shall he live again ? All the days 
of my appointed time will I wait, till my change 
come. Thou shalt call and I will answer thee: 
thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine 
hands. For now thou numberest my steps : dost 
thou not watch over my sin? My transgression 
is sealed up in a bag and thou sewest up mine 
iniquity. . . . 

The waters wear the stones: thou washeth 
away the things w T hich grow out of the dust 
of the earth: and thou destroy eth the hope of 
man. Thou prevailest forever against him, and 
he passeth: thou changest his countenance and 
senclest him away. — Job 14. 

3. WORTHLESSNESS OF EARTHLY THINGS 

They that trust in their wealth and boast 
themselves in the multitude of their riches : none 

61 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

of them can by any means redeem his brother, 
nor give to God a ransom for him: (For the re- 
demption of their soul is precious and it ceaseth 
forever:) That he should still live forever and 
not see corruption. For he seeth that wise men 
die, likewise the fool and the brutish person per- 
ish, and leave their wealth to others. Their in- 
ward thought is, that their houses shall continue 
for ever and their dwelling places to all gene- 
ration; they call their lands after their own 
names. 

Nevertheless man being in honor abideth not ; 
he is like the beasts that perish. This their way 
is their folly: yet their posterity approve their 
sayings. Like sheep they are laid in the grave; 
death shall feed on them; and the upright shall 
have dominion over them in the morning; and 
their beauty shall consume in the grave from 
their dwelling. But God will redeem my soul 
from the power of the grave: for he shall re- 
ceive me. 

Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, 
when the glory of his house is increased; for 
when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his 
glory shall not descend after him. Though 
while he lived he blessed his soul : and men will 
praise thee when thou doest well to thyself. He 
shall go to the generation of his fathers; they 
shall never see light. Man that is in honor and 
understandeth not is like the beasts that perish. 
— Ps. 49 : 6-20. 



62 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

From Poverty to Poverty — 1 Ti. 6 : 7. 

Sept. Sel. 3. 

For we brought nothing into this world, and 
it is certain we can carry nothing out. 

I. "We brought nothing into this world" — 

1. No property. 

2. No attainments. Mind of an infant 
blank. Job 1:21; Ps. 49:17. 

a. However we did bring in — 

1. A capacity for impressions — impor- 
tance of right impressions. 

2. Capacity for imitations — importance 
of right examples. 

3. Inherited tendencies. 

4. Germ of self-determination — impor- 
tance of right decisions. 

II. "It is certain we can carry nothing out." 
1. No property, q. 9. As we increase in 

years, our possessions decrease in value. 
We have only a life estate in them, 
q. 16. I. a and h. 

b. But there are things we do carry out — 

1. Our characters, q. 12. I. i. We 
brought only tendencies. 

2. Our deserts. I. e. When we came we 
deserved nothing but a chance. 

3. Our memories — we brought no recollec- 
tions. In future our memories will 
comfort or torment us. 

—J. M. Avann, D. D. 
63 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

But a Step—Then Death— 1 S. 20: 3. 

Sept. Sel. 1. 

There is but a step between me and death. 
David felt the nearness of death. Equally 
true of all. Life always uncertain, q. 1 and 2. 

1. A step all must take. He. 9:27; Ec. 9:5. 
Science, philosophy, even religion will not pre- 
vent it. Law of the universe. Ec. 3:19, 20. 
q. 11 and 13. Ec. 8:8. 

2. We do not know when we must take this 
step. Ec; 9:12. It may be to-morrow. Ja. 4: 
13, 14 ; Lk. 12 : 20. In the midst of life and 
business, q. 16; I. c and d. Suddenly — without 
warning. 1 Th. 5 : 2-4, q. 4 and 6 ; I. e. 

3. It is a parting step. Job 7:9, 10; Ec. 
12 : 5. Prom world of matter. Job 14 : 20, 21. 
q. 6. From body. 2 Co. 5 : 6. Prom friends, 
from property, etc. 

4. It is a solemn and mysterious step. Job 
10:21, 22. He must be reckless who takes it 
carelessly. 

5. It is a step that must be taken alone — or 
with Christ. Ps. 23 : 4 ; Is. 43 : 2 ; Ac. 7 : 55, 59. 
q. 5; I. a. 

6. Preparation for this step necessary. Sin 
'makes it dangerous. Ro. 6:23; 1 Co. 15:56. 

q. 1. Sins forgiven bring confidence. Pr. 14: 
26, 27; He. 3:6. 

7. We may so : live that step may be into 
heaven. Is. 35 : 10, 

—A. II. D. 
64 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

Blessed Are the Dead — Rev. 14 : 13. 

Sept. Sel. 2. 

And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto 
me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in 
the Lord. 

1. Decay and death written everywhere in 
nature, q. 3 and 15. In man's constitution, 
q. 2, 9. He. 9 : 27. Loved ones die. Death 
seems the lord of life. q. 11. Ec. 3:19. Un- 
known sea where perish human hopes. Job 
10 : 21, 22. Dark with mysteries, etc. Ancients 
— no ans. History, science, philosophy, infidelity 
— no ans. I. k. 

2. A voice from heaven — not earth. John 
heard it — commanded to write it. Message of 
death's Conqueror. Jesus conquered death in 
his own person. Rev. 1 : 18. For all his fol- 
lowers. He. 2 : 14, 15. q. 12 ; I. a. 

3. Blessed are the dead — in the Lord. Won- 
derful words. Our dead are happy, and hope 
lives. Is. 35:10; 1 Th. 4:13, 14. Tell all the 
broken-hearted. Jn. 14:1-3. "Died in the 
Lord" — not that all the dead are happy. Jn. 
5:29. Paul— Ph. 1 : 21, 23. Ro. 14:7, 8. La. 

4. Why should we mourn if they are happy? 
This separation is not final. 2 S. 12: 23; 1 Th. 
4 : 13, 14. Heaven is our eternal home — where 
all are blessed. 

—A, H. D. 



65 



PASTOE'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

A Christian Burial.— Ac. 8:2; Mt. 14:12. 

After Death— Judgment.— He. 9:27; 2 Co. 
5:10. 

A Place Prepared.— Jn. 14: 3; Mt. 25 : 34; 1 Co. 
2 : 9 ; He. 11 : 16. 

A Prince Fallen.— 2 S. 3 : 38 ; Ps. 82 : 7. 

As a Thief in the Night— 2 P. 3:10; 1 Th. 5: 

2-4; Eev. 3:3. 
A Sailor's Death.— Ps. 55:8 ; 107:29. 30; Eev. 

20:13. 

A Soldier's Death.— 2 Ti. 4:7, 8; Jos. 23:14. 
Be Ye Ready.— Mt. 25 : 10 ; Lk. 12 : 40 ; 2 Ti. 4 : 6. 
But a Step— then Death.— 1 S. 20 : 3 ; Pr. 27 : 1. 
Business Interrupted.— Ja. 4: 13, 14; Lk. 12: 20. 
Death of a Good Man.— Ac. 7 : 59, 60; Pr. 12 : 2. 
Dead Yet Speaking.— He. 11 : 4, 9 : 16, 17. 
Death of a Good Woman.— Ac. 9 : 36-39. 
Death of a Deacon.— Ac. 6:5, 7 : 54-60. , 
Death of a Minister.— Ac. 20:24; 2 Ti. 4:5. 
Death of a Husband.— Jl. 1 : 8 ; SS. 3 : 2. 
Death of a Wife.— Gn. 48: 7; Pr. 31: 10-31. 
Death of a Brother.— 2 S. 1 : 26 ; Jn. 11 : 23. 
Death of a Sister.— Nu. 20 :1 ; Ac. 9 : 36-39. 
Departing.— Ph. 1 : 23 ; 2 Co. 5:8; 2 Ti. 4:6. 
Fear of Death.— He. 2 : 14, 15 ; Ps. 23 : 4 ; Is. 43 : 

1,2. 
God the Dispenser of Death.— Dt. 32 : 39 ; Job. 

9:12. 

66 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

God a Judge of the Widow.— Ps. 68 : 5, 146 : 9 ; 

Dt. 10:18. 
Hope in Death.— Pr. 14 : 32 ; He. 6 : 18, 19 ; Col. 

1 : 5 ; 1 P. 1 : 3. 
In the Midst of Life.— Ps. 102 : 24 ; Jer. 15 : 9 ; 

Is. 38 : 10. 

Life's Silver Cord.— Ec. 12 : 6, 4 : 12 ; Jer. 10 : 20. 

Life and Death Ours.— 1 Co. 3 : 22 ; Ro. 8 : 38. 

O! for a Little More Time.— Ps. 39:13; Job. 
10 : 20-22. 

Preparation for Death.— 2 K. 20 : 1 ; Jos. 1 : 11 ; 
Am. 4 : 12. 

Peace in Death.— Ps. 37:37; Is. 57:2; Jn. 
14 : 27. 

Plans Broken.— Job 17:11; Ja. 4:13, 14. 
Sun Gone Down at Noon. — Am. 8 : 9 ; Jer. 15 : 9. 
Sin the Cause of Death.— Ro. 5 : 12 ; Gn. 2 : 17. 
The Cup of Death.— Mt. 20 : 22, 26 : 39. 
The Path of Life.— Ps. 16 : 11 ; Mt. 7 : 14. 
The Rich Fool.— Lk. 12 : 20, 21 ; Mt. 6 : 19-21 ; 
Ps. 49 : 6, 7. 

To Die is Gain.— Ph. 1 =21 ; 2 Co. 5 : 8 ; 2 Ti. 4 : 6. 
The End of All.— Ec. 7 : 2, 9 : 3 ; Job. 30 : 23. 
Time is Short.— 1 Co. 7 : 21, 31 ; Ps. 89 : 47, 48. 
"Warning Given.— Is. 38:1; Mt. 24:44; Ezek. 
33 : 11 ; Ps. 9 : 17. 

Well with the Righteousness.— Is. 3: 10; Pr. 14: 
32 ;Mt. 13:43. 



67 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

A PRAYER 

Lord most mighty, O holy and most merci- 
ful Savior, look with compassion upon our afflic- 
tion and pity us in our sorrow. 

We are deeply sensible of the frailty and un- 
certainty of human life, and the awful fact of 
death. "What is our life ? It is even as a vapor 
that appeareth for a little time and then van- 
isheth away. 

May these sad providences teach us always to 
be ready for life with its responsibilities or 
death with its solemnities — for we know not 
which we shall meet on the morrow. May we not 
be so occupied with the affairs of this life as to 
forget that which is to come! 

Thou Eternal God, we acknowledge Thee 
as the Author and Disposer of all life, whose 
right it is to give or to take away. We humbly 
beseech Thee to help us that we may yield 
ourselves with resignation and patience to Thy 
perfect and righteous will, being assured that 
though we can not understand the mystery of 
Thy ways yet Thou art ever faithful both in 
affliction and in comfort. 

Look with tender pity, we pray Thee, upon 
these bereaved friends that, while they mourn, 
they may not murmur, but remembering Thy 
promises and love in Jesus Christ, may resign 
themselves meekly into Thy hands, who bringest 
life out of death, and who turnest grief into 
eternal joy, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen. — A. H. D. 

68 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

QUOTATIONS 
1. 

0, why should the spirit of morljpl be proud? 
Like a swift-fleeting meteor, a fast-flying cloud, 
A flash of the lightning, a break of the wave, 
Man passeth from life to his rest in the grave. 

'T is the wink of an eye, the draft of a breath 
From the blossom of health to the paleness of 

death, 
From the gilded saloon to the bier and the 

shroud — 
0, why should the spirit of mortal be proud? 

— William Knox. 

(Favorite poem of Abraham Lincoln.) 

2. 

Dangers stand thick through all the ground, 

To push us to the tomb ; 
And fierce diseases wait around 

To hurry mortals home. 

3. 

Like leaves on trees the race of men are found, 

Now green in youth, now withering on the 

ground ; 
Another race the following spring supplies, 
They fall successive and successive rise ; 
So generations in their course decay, 
So flourish these when those have passed away. 

— Homer's Iliad. 

69 



5. 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

No time for a last farewell, 

No time for the shock of fear, 
Scarcely a moment's halt on the shore, 

With the guide and the boatman near — 
Dear, how surprised you were to go, 
"With little to suffer, little to know. 

Only a moment of dark, 

A dream of the fleeting night, 
And then the beautiful break of day 

And the quiet peace of light; 
And you found yourself where you longed to 
stand, 

In the repose of the fatherland. 

— Marianne Farmingham. 

I know not what the future hath, 

Of marvel or surprise; 
Assured alone that life and death 

His mercy underlies. 

And so beside the silent sea 

I wait the muffled oar, 
No harm from Him can come to me 

On ocean or on shore. 

— Whittier. 



70 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

6. 

One morn I missed him on the 'customed hill, 
Along the heath and near his favorite tree ; 

Another came; nor yet beside the rill, 
Nor up the lawn, nor at the wood was he. 

— Gray. 

7. 

Then steal aw r ay, give little warning. 

Choose thine own time; 
Say not good-night — but in some brighter 
clime 
Bid me good-morning. 

8. 

A poor lad, 
Who, choosing play at hide and seek with death, 
Just hid where death just came to look for him ; 
For there 's no place, I think, can keep him out, 
Once he 's his eye upon you. 

— Calderon. 

9. 

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, 

And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, 
Await alike the inevitable hour: 

The paths of glory lead but to the grave. 

— Gray. 

10. 

Death loves a shining mark, a signal blow. 

— Young. 



71 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

11. 

Here learn that all the griefs and joys, 

Which now torment, which now beguile, 
Are children's hurts, are children's toys, 

Scarce worthy of one bitter smile; 
Here learn that pulpit, throne, and press, 

Sword, scepter, lyre, alike are frail; 
That science is a blind man's guess, 
And history a nurse's tale. 

— Macaulay. 
12. 

This, only this, subdues the fear of death — 
A pardon bought with blood ! with blood divine. 

13. 

Death comes with reckless footsteps 

To the hall and hut: 
Think you that death will tarry, knocking, 
Where the door is shut ? 

14. 

I have sought round this verdant earth 

For unfading joy; 
I have tried every source of mirth, 

But all, all will cloy. 

15. 

How shocking must thy summons be, death! 
To him that is at ease in his possessions; 
Who, counting on long years of pleasure here, 
Is quite unfurnished for that world to come! 

72 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

Prince Albert, upon his dying bed, said: 
"I have had wealth, rank, and power. But if 
this were all I had, how wretched I should be 
now! 

Rock of ages, cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in Thee." 

b. 

Over the triple doorways of the Cathedral of 
Milan there are three inscriptions spanning the 
splendid arches. Over one are the words, "All 
that pleases is but for a moment. " Over the 
other, "All that troubles is but for a moment. " 
While over the central arch are these significant 
words, "That only is important which is eter- 
nal." 

c. 

The "King of Terrors" comes with noiseless 
step, shod with wool, stealthily, silently, with 
bated breath ; he is not seen, he is not heard, he 
is not suspected, till all at once his cold shadow 
falls upon us, and his dark form stands between 
us and the light of the living world. — Macmillan. 

d. 

Death carries off a man who is gathering flow- 
ers and whose mind is distracted as a flood 
carries off a sleeping village. — Buddha. 



73 



V^y 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

e. 

To one who is living aright no death can be 
sudden and no place unfavorable. One step and 
all roads meet. — Beecher. 

f. 

Death is but the place at which the little 
stream of life merges into the ocean of eternity. 
Death is but the turning-point in the endless 
path of existence. 

Talk as we like, plead as we may, death with- 
out God is terrible. 

h. 

An Egyptian king was buried with a scepter 
of gold in his hands. When the mummy of 
Menephta was uncovered, the scepter was gone. 
The golden symbol of royalty and of power had 
been stolen. Some live so that death robs them 
of all they have. 

i. 

By a grave one learns what life really is — 
that it is not here, but elsewhere — that this is 
the exile, there is the home. As we grow older 
the train of life goes faster and faster; those 
with whom we travel step out from station to 
station, and our own station too soon will be 
marked.---Max Mueller. — Life and Religion. 



74 



FUNERAL OF PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

Death is like the stereotyping process of a book 
in the hands of the printer when the plates are 
made. It is like the fixing solution of a pho- 
tographer. No changes, corrections, or altera- 
tions can be made in life's record. We must then 
say, as did Pilate, "What I have written, I 
have written." 

k. 

The lovely and loving brother, husband, 
father, friend died where manhood's morning 
almost touches noon, and while the shadows still 
were falling toward the west. He had not 
passed on life's highway the stone that marks 
its highest point ; but, being weary for a moment, 
he laid down by the wayside and, using his 
burden for a pillow, fell into that dreamless 
sleep that kisses down his eyelids still. While 
yet in love with life and raptured with the 
world, he passed to silence and pathetic dust. 

Yet, after all, it may be best — just in the 
happiest, sunniest hour of all the voyage, while 
eager winds are kissing every sail, to dash 
against the unseen rock, and in an instant hear 
the billows roar above a sunken ship. For 
whether in mid sea or 'mong the breakers of 
a farther shore, a wreck must mark at last the 
end of each and all. — Robert G. Ingersoll, at his 
brother's funeral. 



75 



Funeral of an Aged Person 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 
1. A Prayer op Moses 

(Appropriate to open any funeral service.) 

Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in 
all generations. Before the mountains were 
brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the 
earth and the world, even from everlasting to 
everlasting, thou art God. 

Thou turnest man to destruction ; and sayest, 
Return, ye children of men. For a thousand 
years in thy sight is but as yesterday when it 
is past, and as a watch in the night. Thou 
carries* them away as with a flood; they are 
as asleep: in the morning they are like grass 
which groweth up; in the morning it flourish- 
eth, and groweth up. In the evening it is cut 
down and withereth. For we are consumed by 
thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled. 

Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our 
secret sins in the light of thy countenance. 
For all our days are passed away in thy wrath : 
we spend our years as a tale that is told. The 
days of our years are threescore years and ten; 
and if by reason of strength they be fourscore 
years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; 
for it is soon cut off and we fly away. Who 

76 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 

knoweth the power of thine anger? Even ac- 
cording to thy fear so is thy wrath. So teach 
us to number our days that we may apply our 
hearts unto wisdom. 

Return, Lord, how long? and let it repent 
thee concerning thy servants. 0, satisfy with 
thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all 
our days. Make us glad according to the days 
wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years 
wherein we have seen evil. Let thy work ap- 
pear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their 
children. And let the beauty of the Lord our 
God be upon us : and establish thou the work of 
our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands 
establish thou it. — Ps. 90. 

2. The Golden Bowl 

(Especially appropriate at a Masonic funeral,) 
Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy 
youth, while the evil days come not, nor the 
years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no 
pleasure in them; while the sun or the light, 
or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor 
the clouds return after the rain: In the day 
when the keepers of the house shall tremble and 
the strong men shall bow themselves, and the 
grinders cease because they are few, and those 
that look out of the windows be darkened, and 
the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the 
sound of grinding is low, and he shall rise up 
at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of 
music shall be brought low; Also when they 

77 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears 
shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall 
flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, 
and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his 
long home, and the mourners go about the 
streets: Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the 
golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken 
at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cis- 
tern. 

Then shall the dust return to the earth as 
it was : and the spirit shall return unto God who 
gave it. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole 
matter : Fear God and keep his commandments : 
for this is the whole duty of man. — Ec. 12 : 
1-7, 13. 

3. The Shepherd Psalm 

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. 
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: 
he leadeth me beside the still waters. He re- 
storeth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of 
righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though 
I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy 
rod and thy staff they comfort me. — Ps. 23 : 1-4. 

4. Present With the Lord 

(For a devout Christian.) 
For we know that if our earthly house of this 
tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building 
of God, an house not made with hands, eternal 
in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly 
desiring to be clothed upon with our house which 

78 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 

is from heaven: if so be that being clothed we 
shall not be found naked. For we that are in 
this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not 
for that we would be unclothed, but clothed 
upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of 
life. Now he that hath wrought us for the self- 
same thing is God, who also hath given unto us 
the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are 
always confident, knowing that whilst we are at 
home in the body, we are absent from the Lord : 
(For we walk by faith and not by sight:) We 
are confident, I say, and willing rather to be 
absent from the body and to be present with the 
Lord. Wherefore we labor that whether present 
or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we 
must all appear before the judgment seat of 
Christ; that every one may receive the things 
done in his body, according to that he hath done, 
whether it be good or bad. — 2 Co. 5 : 1-10. 

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ ? 
shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or 
famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword ? As 
it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the 
day long; we are accounted as sheep for the 
slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more 
than conquerors through him that loved us. 

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor 
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, 
nor things present, nor things to come, nor 
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall 
be able to separate us from the love of God, 
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Ro. 8 : 35-39. 

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PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

5. The Aged Saint's Triumph 

Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there 
is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. 
My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the 
strength of my heart, and my portion forever. 
— Ps. 73 : 25, 26. 

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my 
course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there 
is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which 
the Lord the righteous Judge shall give me 
at that day: and not to me only, but unto all 
them also that love his appearing. 2 Ti. 4 : 7, 8. 

For I know that my Redeemer liveth and that 
he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth : 
And though after my skin worms destroy this 
body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom 
I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall be- 
hold and not another. — Job 19 : 25-27. 

And they shall see his face ; and his name shall 
be in their foreheads. And there shall be no 
night there; and they need no candle, neither 
light of the sun ; for the Lord God giveth them 
light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. 
—Rev. 22:4, 5. 

death, where is thy sting? grave, where 
is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and 
the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to 
God, which giveth us the victory through our 
Lord Jesus Christ. — 1 Co. 15 : 55-57. 



80 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

Ripe for Harvesting — Job 5 : 26. Sept. Sel. 1. 

Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, 
like as a shock of corn cometh in in his season. 

God's last and best promise to a good man. 
Beautiful symbolism — vrs. 17-26, fufilled to Job 
42 : 17. Death seems natural and no calamity 
in such cases. I. e; q. 12. Abraham — Gn. 25 : 8, 
David— ICh. 29:28. God both sower and 
gleaner — our friend. Job 1 : 21. 

1. Seed sown. Life opportunity. Character. 
No seed-time, no harvest. Ec. 11 : 4-6. Have a 
care what kind of seed. Gal. 6 : 7, 8 ; Pr. 22 : 8. 
q. 2. Pr. 11:18; Hos. 10:12; IP. 1:23; Jn. 
3:7. 

2. The Growth. Good soil. Mt. 13 : 8. Cul- 
tivation. Mt. 13 : 19. Growth gradual — Mk. 4 : 
28 ; but vigorous— Ps. 92 : 12-14 ; Eph. 4 : 15 ; 2 P. 
3:18. 

3. The fruit — a holy life. Fruits of Spirit. 
Gal. 5 : 22, 23. Good deeds. Mt. 25 : 34-40. Ac. 
11 : 24. Good name. Pr. 22 : 1 ; Ec. 7 : 1. 

4. The harvest home — time not for tears, but 
joy. Is. 9 : 3. The soul full — ripe by the Sun 
of Righteousness. I. c. Mai. 4 : 2. Profitable — 
a. For husbandman ; b. earth ; c. heaven ; d. the 
glorified soul. Is. 35 : 10, 9 : 3. I. g. Ex. 34:22; 

Rev. 14:15. 

—A. H. D. 

6 81 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

The Span of Life— Ps. 90 : 10. 

Sept. Sel. 1 or 3. 

The days of our years are threescore years and 
ten. 

This, then, is the span or life ! the measure of 
existence ! the sum of human activities ! How 
short ! We may well pray, v. 12, or lament with 
Job 14: 1-4. 

1. Look at the littleness of life — as to time. 
From seventy years subtract five years' infancy, 
one-third spent in sleep, etc. Average life less 
than thirty years — and these pursued by sorrow, 
sickness, decay, death. What is it worth? Ec. 
2:17; Job 6 111— little? 

2. Look at the largeness and richness of life — 
as to deeds. Life God's best gift. Ac. 17:25. 
Long life a special providence. Ps. 91 : 16. Days 
priceless jewels. Modern civilization and inven- 
tions have enlarged life — steam, electricity, etc. 
We can do fifty times more than our fathers. 
Moral and religious forces. Time of little im- 
portance. Jesus' three years. Ps. 112 : 6. q. 11. 

3. Look at the immortality of life. Text meas- 
ures mortality. Man is immortal. (See qs. 
on immortality.) Jn. 11: 26. Eternal life more 
than immortality. Completeness, blessedness, 
durability of eternal life in Christ. Death the 
door to a fuller life. q. 7, 9, 14. Works follow. 
Rev. 14:13. q. 11. I. g, jj 

—A. H. D. 



82 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 

Death of the Saints — Ps. 116 : 15. 

Sept. Sel. 3. 

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death 
of his saints. 

I. God's viewpoint different from man's. Is. 
55 : 8, 9. Higher and broader — hence his view 
of death different. 

1. Man's view of death — he sees the loss, 
broken homes, blighted plans, etc. Does 
not see release from sinful world, en- 
trance to better state, etc. 

2. God's view. A sleep. Mk. 5: 39; Jn. 
11 : 11. A blessed change. Rev. 14 : 13. 
Precious. Text. Happy occasion, q. 9. 

II. Death of saint precious to God, for it is — ■ 

1. Saint's honorable discharge from war- 
fare. Life a battle against disease, pov- 
erty, sin, etc. q. 11. Christian life a 
fight. Ro. 7 : 14-25 ; Eph. 6 : 10-18. I. d. 

2. Saint's transition to a glorified state, 
q. 7. Spirit never dies. 

3. Saint's exaltation to a satisfied state. 
q. 8. Here dissatisfaction, mysteries, 
seeming injustices. There satisfaction 
abides. Ps. 17:15, 16:11, 65:4. 

4. Saint's welcome home — travelers here. 
He. 13 : 14. q. 10. 

III. Warning and consolation — both in text. 
Death precious of saints only. Jn. 5 : 29. q. 3. 
Dn. 12 : 2, 3. We shall meet them again. He. 
12 : 23. I. c. q. 1. 

— J. N. Greene. 
83 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

Abiding or Departing.— Ph. 1 : 23, 24 ; 2 Co. 5 : 8. 
A Good Fight.— 2 Ti. 4 : 7 ; Ph. 3 : 14 ; He. 12 : 1. 
A Good Old Age.— Gn. 15 : 15, 25 : 8 ; Is. 46 : 4. 
As Gold Tried.— Job 23 : 10 ; Zee. 13:9; Pr. 17 : 3. 
At Rest.— Job. 3 : 17 ; 2 Ti. 1 : 7 ; Rev. 14: 13. 
Blessed Dead.— Rev. 14 : 13 ; Ee. 4 : 2 • Rev. 20 : 6. 
Chariot of the Lord.— 2 K. 2 : 11 ; Gn. 5 : 24. 
Crown of Glory.— Pr. 16:31, 20:29; 2 Ti. 4:8. 
Days Numbered.— Job 14:5; Ps. 90 : 10, 12, 39 : 4. 
Desire Accomplished.— Lk. 2 : 29, 30 ; Gn. 46 : 30. 
Death Knell of AH.— Gn. 5:27; Ec. 3:20; He. 

9 : 27. 
JDeath of a Mother.— Ps. 35:14; Pr. 31:1; Is. 

66 : 13. 
Death of a Father.— Gn. 25 : 8 ; 2 K. 2 : 12. 
Death of God's Saints.— Ps. 116:15, 34:22; 

Nu. 23 : 10. 
Death of the Righteous.— Nu. 23: 10; Ps. 37: 37, 

116:15. 
Fear of Death Removed.— He. 2:14, 15; Ps. 

23:4. 
/Glad Home Coming.— Is. 51 : 11, 35:10; Rev. 

21 : 25. 
Gathered Home.— Gn. 49:33; Ee. 12:5; Jn. 

14:2. 
God Took Him.— Gn. 5 : 24 ; 2 K. 2 : 11 ; He. 11 : 5. 
Guide Unto Death.— Ps. 48 : 14, 23 : 4 ; Ps. 73 : 24. 
Inheritance of a Good Man. — Pr. 13 : 22, 22 : 1. 
Hope in Death.— Pr. 14:32; Gn. 46:30; Ph. 

1:23. 

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FUNERAL OF AN AGED PEESON 

Into the Morning.— Am. 5 : 8 ; Ps. 30 : 5 ; Is. 58 : 8. 
Light at Evening Time.— Zee. 14 : 7 ; Pr. 4 : 18 ; 

Is. 58 : 8. 
Light Affliction — Exceeding Glory. — 2 Co. 4 : 17. 
My Change.— Job 14:14; Ph. 3:21; 1 Co. 15: 

51; 2 Co. 3:18. 
Over Jordan.— 2 S. 19 : 36 ; Jer. 12 : 5 ; Jos. 1 : 11. 
Quiet Resting Places.— Is. 32 : 18 ; Ps. 23 : 2 ; Rev. 

14:13. 
Quietness and Assurance. — Is. 32 : 17 ; Job 3 : 17. 
Ripe for Harvest.— Job 5:26; Pr. 16:31; Is. 

46:4. 
The King in His Beauty.— Is. 33 : 17 ; Mt. 5:8; 

Rev. 22:4. 
The Fountain of Life.— Ps. 36 : 9 ; Jer. 2 : 13 ; 

Jn. 4 : 14. 
The End of All.— Ec. 7:2, 3:20; He. 9:27; 

Ps. 89:48. 
Victory Over Death.— 1 Co. 15:54; Is. 25:8; 

Rev. 20 : 14. 
Valley of the Shadow.— Ps. 23:4, 44:19; Job. 

10 : 21, 22. 
Waiting for Death.— Job 14:14; Ps. 27:14; 

2Ti. 4:6, 7. 
Work Ended.— Ec. 9 : 10 ; Job 17 : 11 ; Jn. 9 : 4, 

17:4. 
Works Follow Them.— Rev. 14:13; He. 6:10, 

Rev. 22 : 12. 



85 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

A PRAYER 

Lord God of our fathers, we bless Thee for 
the holy triumphs of Thy saints in every age 
and among all peoples. We thank Thee for the 
battles fought, the victories won, and achieve- 
ments gained by those who have ceased from 
their labors and entered into rest. Thou hast 
said, "The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it 
be found in the way of righteousness." We 
thank Thee that so often we have been permitted 
to see this coronation of goodness in Thy serv- 
ants. 

Bless all old people everywhere; some have 
wandered far in life's pathway and mayhap have 
forgotten Thee. Turn, w r e pray Thee, their trem- 
bling steps into the ways of life. The young 
may die, but the old must. Prepare all hearts 
for this great change. 

Lord, we beseech Thee to bless all these 
relatives and friends, that in their grief and sor- 
row at this separation they may still know the 
goodness of God and rely on his unchanging love. 
May the lessons and precepts and holy examples 
of Thy servants who have died in the Lord be 
remembered in the years that are to come. 

God, rejoice the souls of Thy servants that 
none of those that trust in Thee may be desolate. 
Make us glad according to the days wherein Thou 
hast afflicted us and the years wherein we have 
seen evil. Let Thy work appear unto Thy serv- 
ants and Thy glory unto their children, now and 
for evermore. Amen. — A. II. D. 

86 



1 



4. 



5. 



ffUMEBAIi OF AN AGED PERSON 

QUOTATIONS 

Servant of God, well done! 

Thy glorious warfare 's past, 
The battle 's fought, the race is won, 

And thou art crowned at last. 

My days are in the yellow leaf, 

The flower, the fruit of life are gone, 

The worm, the canker, and the grief 
Are mine alone. 

— Lord Byron. 

Let faith exalt her joyful voice, 
And now in triumph sing; 

Grave, where is thy victory? 
And where, Death, thy sting? 



And I shall see him face to face, 
And tell the story, saved by grace. 



Life's shadows are meeting Eternity's day, 

— James G. Clark. 



6. 

The course of my long life hath reached at last, 
In fragile bark o'er tempestuous sea, 
The common harbor, where must rendered be 

Account of all the actions of the past. 

— Longfellow. 

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PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 



Build thee more stately mansions, my soul ! 
As the swift seasons roll ; 
Leave the low-vaulted past: 
Let each new temple, nobler than the last, 
Shut thee from heaven with dome more vast, 
Till thou at length are free, 
Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unrest- 
ing sea. 

— Oliver Wendell Holmes. 



8, 



There is no prison for the soul 

That dwells within God's boundless peace: 
And sickness builds no dungeon walls 
For one who knoweth sin's surcease ; 
He soars on tireless pinions high 
And lives beneath the open sky. 

— M. H. Appleby. 

9. 

With Thee, my Lord, with Thee I do not fear 

To cross the threshold of the mystic door; 
I shall not falter if I find Thee near, 

For Thou hast paced the portico before. 
Let me but feel Thy hand, Thy features see, 
I shall emerge in happiness with Thee. 

— Rev. J. P. Hutchinson. 



10. 



Here in an inn a stranger dwelt, 
Here joy and grief by turns he felt; 
Poor dwelling, now we close the door — 
The task is o'er, 

The sojourner returns no more. 
88 



11. 



12. 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 



Life's labor done, as sinks the clay, 
Light from its load the spirit flies, 

While heaven and earth combine to say, 
\ \ How blest the righteous when he dies ! ' ' 
— Mrs. Anna Barbauld. 

Go when life's sweet journey ends, 
Soul and body part like friends — 
No quarrels, no murmurs, no delay; 
A kiss, a sigh, and so away. 



13. 



Give me no guess for the dying pillow. 

— Joseph Cook. 
14. 
So when the iron portal shuts behind us, 

And life forgets us in its noise and whirl; 
Visions that shunned the glaring noonday find 
us, 
And glimmering starlight shows the gates of 
pearl. 

— Oliver Wendell Holmes. 



89 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

The ancients went far and wide seeking the 
"Elixir of Life" which would cure all sickness, 
assuage all pain, and transform hoary age into 
blooming youth — but they never found it. 

b. 

Ponce de Leon set out in 1512 A. D. for Porto 
Rico, hoping to find the "Fountain of Perpetual 
Youth;" the expedition resulted in the discovery 
of Florida, but the "Fountain of Youth" was 
not found. 



"Sunset," did you say? Aye, but remember 
that sunset in one country is sunrise in another. 
So sometimes the pink and purple of life's sun- 
set meets and mingles with the golden glow of 
eternity's morning. — A. H. D. 

d. 

An aged Christian living in a poorhouse, while 
conversing with a minister, showed signs of much 
joy; as a reason for it, she said, "0 Sir, I was 
just thinking what a change it will be from the 
poorhouse to heaven ! ' ' — Foster 

e. 

As one gets older, death seems hardly to make 
so wide a gap — a few years more or less, that 's 
all; meanwhile, we know in whose hands we all 
are. Life is very beautiful, but death has its 
beauty, too. — Max Mueller. — Life and Religion. 

90 



FUNERAL OF AN AGED PERSON 

f. 

A dying saint of ninety-four years was heard 
to murmur, "It is so heavy." When asked 
what was i \ so heavy, ' ' she replied : i ' Ah ! the 
flesh — the flesh is so heavy. I long to drop it 
and go." 

g. 

The day of their death (aged Christians) is 

indeed better than the day of their birth, for 
rich with all the treasures of spiritual knowl- 
edge and experience — the growth and a whole 
lifetime of discipline — they come to their last 
hour like the mellow fruit that gathers into 
itself all the life of the tree, and all the dew 
and sunshine of the summer, and at last bends 
and breaks the branch from which it hangs. — 
Macmillan. 

h. 

The sifting of the correspondence is done by 
nature. This its last and greatest contribution 
to mankind. Over the mouth of the grave the 
perfect and the imperfect submit to their final 
separation. Each goes to its own — "earth to 
earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, and spirit 
to spirit." — Drummond. 

1. 

Every day travels toward death, but only the 
last one arrives at it. To him that told Socrates, 
"The thirty tyrants have sentenced thee to 
death," he said, "And nature has sentenced 

91 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

them." Your death is a part of the order of 
the universe, a part of the life of the world. 
Lucertius says: 

"Mortals among themselves by turns do live, 
And life's bright torch to the next runner 
give," 

alluding to the Athenian games, wherein those 
that ran a race carried torches in their hands, 
and, the race being done, delivered them into 
the hands of those who were to run next. — Mon- 
taigue. 

i 

Death to the believer is not like the evening 
star sinking into darkness, but like the morning 
star lost in the brightness of the day. 






92 



Frailty of Life and Certainty of 

Death 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 
1. Human Frailty 

As for man, his days are as grass: as the 
flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the 
wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the 
place thereof shall know it no more. But the 
mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to ever- 
lasting upon them that fear him. Ps. 103 : 15-17. 

Man that is born of a woman is of few days, 
and full of trouble. He eometh forth like a 
flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a 
shadow, and continueth not. Job 14 : 1, 2. 

Lord, make me to know mine end, and the 
measure of my days, what it is; that I may 
know how frail I am. Behold, thou bast made 
my days as an hand-breadth; and mine age is 
as nothing before thee : verily every man at his 
best state is altogether vanity. Ps. 39 : 4, 5. 

Boast not thyself of to-morrow ; for thou know- 
est not what a day may bring forth. Pr. 27 : 1. 

Go to now, ye that say, To-day or to-morrow 
we will go into such a city and continue there 
a year, and buy, and sell, and get gain : Whereas 

93 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For 
what is your life? It is even a vapour, that 
appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth 
away. 

For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, 
we shall live, and do this or that. Ja. 4 : 13-15. 

Thou turnest man to destruction; and say- 
est, Return, ye children of men. For a thou- 
sand years in thy sight are but as yesterday 
when it is past and as a watch in the night. 
Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they 
are as a sleep: in the morning they are like 
grass which groweth up. In the morning it 
flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it 
is cut down and withereth. . . . The days 
of our years are threescore years and ten; and 
if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, 
yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it 
is soon cut off and we fly away. Ps. 90 : 3-6, 10. 

2. Certainty of Death 

For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, 
and to the house appointed for all living. Job 
30:23. 

As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away : 
so he that goeth down to the grave shall come 
up no more. He shall return no more to his 
house, neither shall his place know him any more. 
Job 7 : 9, 10. 

Remember how short my time is: wherefore 
hast thou made all men in vain? What man is 
he that liveth, and shall not see death ? shall he 

94 



FRAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

deliver his soul from the hand of the grave ? 
Ps. 89 : 47, 48. 

There is no man that hath power over the 
spirit to retain the spirit ; neither hath he power 
in the day of his death: and there is no dis- 
charge in that war. Ec. 8 : 8. 

For man also knoweth not his time: as the 
fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the 
birds that are caught in the snare; so are the 
sons of men snared in an evil time, when it 
falleth suddenly upon them. Ec. 9 : 12. 

For we must all appear before the judgment 
seat of Christ; that every one may receive the 
things done in his body, according to that he 
hath done, whether it be good or bad. 2 Co. 
5:10. 

It is appointed unto men once to die, but after 
this the judgment. He. 9 : 27. 

Be not deceived ; God is not mocked : for what- 
soever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh 
reap corruption ; but he that soweth to the spirit 
shall of the spirit reap life everlasting. And 
let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due 
season we shall reap if we faint not. Gal. 6 : 7-9. 

For since by man came death, by man came 
also the resurrection of the dead. For as in 
Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made 
alive. For he must reign till he hath put all 
enemies under his feet. The last enemy that 
shall be destroyed is death. 1 Co. 15 : 21, 22, 
25, 26. 

95 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

Dust to Dust— Ec. 12 : 7. Sept. Sel. 1. 

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it 
was, and the spirit shall return unto God who 
gave it. 

1. This is a death dirge — vrs. 1-7. A highly 
figurative description of the decay and death of 
the physical man. 

2. Man a duality — dust and spirit, body and 
soul. Body, material and earthy. Gn. 2:7; 

1 Co. 15 : 47. Spirit, heavenly — breath of God. 
Gn. 2:7; Ac. 17:28. 

3. Dust returns to dust — God's decree in all 
flesh. Gn. 3:19; Job 21 : 26, 34 : 15 ; Ps. 104 ! 29 ; 
Ec. 3 : 20. Body subject to earthly conditions 
and limitations. 1 Co. 15 : 50. Decay and death. 

2 Co. 4 : 16. All humanity must submit — high, 
low, rich, poor, king and subject, q. 1, 2, 5, 
6, 10, 12. I. a, b, e. 

4. Spirit return to God — who gave it. Gn. 
2:7; Ac. 17 : 28. Subject to spiritual conditions 
— to God for judgment. Ro. 14:12. For re- 
wards or punishment. Mt. 25 : 31-46 ; Rev. 14 : 
13. q. 15, 16. To be with God. Jn. 14:3; 
1 Th. 4 : 17. And with the spirits of the just. 
He. 12:23. I. d. 

—A. H. D. 



96 



FRAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

Facts About Death— Job 30 j 23. Sept. Sel. 2. 

For I know that thou wilt bring me to death 
and to the house appointed for all living, 

1. Death is the most terrible fact in the uni- 
verse, q. 7. Silent, q. 13. Resistless. Ec. 
8:8. q. 14. Ruthless. Job 14:19,20. q. 12. 
Remorseless — stops not for medical skill, tender 
nursing, tears, or prayers; absolute conqueror 
over earth. 1 Co. 15 : 26. 

2. Death takes our friends into his cold em- 
brace ; we call, but no answer, q. 2. Gn. 50 : 1. 
" Heaps of dust, but we loved them so;" our 
hearts rebel — but vain ; we must "bury our dead 
out of our sight." Gn. 23:4. 

3. Soon He will take us — this we know. Text. 
Inevitable. Heb. 9:27; Ec. 9:2, 3, 8:8; Job 
33 : 22. q. 12 and 4. I. k. Comes unexpectedly. 
1 Th. 5 : 2. q. 14. 

4. Has death a conqueror? History — I. e. 
q. 2. — Nature — q. 5. — I. 1. — Science — I. j. — In- 
fidelity — say, NO. Revelation. — Rev. 1 : 18 ; 1 Co. 
15:55.— Faith.— 2 Ti. 4:7.— Hope— 1 P. 1:3; 
Ps. 23:4; Ac. 7 : 59.— Experience— say, YES. 
Death shall be conquered. Job 19 : 23-27 j 1 Co. 
15 : 26. No death in heaven. Rev. 21 : 4, 20 : 14 ; 
He. 2: 14. q. 11. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



97 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

As a Leaf— Is. 64: 6. Sept. Sel. 2. 

We all do fade as a leaf. 

A striking and beautiful symbol of life. 

I! We all do fade as a leaf. Ps. 103: 15, 16; 
1 P. 1 : 24. The miracle of unfolding leaves in 
spring — trees clothed in verdure of green all 
summer — with such evidences of life one might 
think they would never fade. Ps. 37 : 35-39. 
q. 3, 4. Yet a few frosts, and bare, naked limbs 
— skeletons of death, where life was so abun- 
dant — leaves scattered and gone; so man. q. 1, 
11. Ps. 90:5, 6. q. 13. Is. 40:6. 

2. The utility of the leaf : while it lives — more 
than beautiful — necessary to life and fruitage of 
the tree. Ps. 1:3; Jer. 17 : 8. It receives sap. 
Ps. 104 : 16. Sunshine, strength, beauty of form 
and color. It gives life, ozone, shade, beauty, 
fruit. Is. 61:3. q. 15. Lk. 6:38. 

3. The leaf is beautiful in death. Beholding 
autumnal colorings, one would think that nature 
had spilt her paint-pot on the forests as she 
went to paint the glories of the evening sunset. 
So we should grow beautiful with age, for 
"Beauty is but the flowering of virtue." The 
kindly, wrinkled face and silver hair, f ' a crown 
of glory," are the fruitage of a holy life. Let 
blighting frosts of age and affliction come — they 
ripen both fruit and foliage. The gold of au- 
tumn's evening is blending with eternity's day. 

4. There is a leaf that never fades — immor- 
tality. Ps. 1:3; Jer. 17:8; Ezek. 47:12; Gn. 
2:9; Rev. 22:2. 

98 —A. H. D. 



FEAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

Challenge — Victory — Thanksgiving — 

1 Co. 15 : 55, 57. Sept. Sel. 1 or 2. 

death, where is thy sting? grave, where 
is thy victory? . . . Thanks be to God, 
which giveth us the victory through our Lord 
Jesus Christ. 

1. The Challenge. Text. Christian challenges 
death to mortal combat — earth's mightiest con- 
queror. Warriors and statesmen, kings and 
slaves, armies and nations, bowed to his scepter 
and fell before his sting, acknowledging him vic- 
tor, q. 1 and 9. He stood without a rival. 
Ec. 8 : 8 5 He. 9 : 27. q. 13. I. a and e. A noble 
challenge — none but a Christian dare make. 
"What is the secret of such confidence ? Pr. 28 : 1 ; 
Is. 50:7, 8; Eph. 3:12; Un. 4:17. q. g. 

2. The victory . . . through our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Jesus death's first Conqueror. 
Eo. 6 : 9 ; 1 Co. 15 : 26 ; Rev. 1 : 18. Robbed death 
of his sting by taking away sin. Jn. 1 : 29 ; 
Eph. 1:7; Col. 2 : 14. Robbed grave of victory 
by rising from it. Mt. 28 : 6, 7 ; Ac. 2 i 31. By 
calling back the dead to life again. Jn. 11 : 43 ; 
Mk. 5: 41, 42; Lk. 7: 14; Jn. 5: 25; 1 Th. 4: 16; 
Rev. 1 : 18. By giving his followers hope. Hos. 
13:14; 2Ti. 1:10; He. 2:14. 

3. The thanksgiving. Eph. 5:20; Rev. 4:9. 
For hope beyond the grave and final victory 
both for ourselves— 2 Ti. 4:7, 8; Job 19:25— 
and for our friends— 1 Th. 4 : 13. I. k. q. 9. 

—A. H. D. 

99 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

As a Cloud.— Job 7:9; Hos. 13:3; Ja. 4:14. 
As a Flower.— Ps. 103:15, 16; Job 14:2; IP. 

1 : 24, 25. 
As a Shadows-Job 14:2, 10:21, 22; Ps. 23:4; 

Lk. 1:79. 
As a Sleep.— Dt. 31 : 16 ; Ps. 13 : 3 ; Job 14 : 12 ; 

Mk. 5:39. 
As Grass.— 2 K. 19 : 26 ; Job 14 : 2 ; Ja. 1 : 10. 
But a Step to Death.— 1 S. 20:3; Lk. 12:20; 

Ja. 4:13-15. 
Corruption.— Job 27:14; Ps. 49:9; Gal. 6:8; 

ICo. 15:50. 
Days Numbered.— Job 14:5; Ps. 39:4, 90:10- 

12; Ac. 17:31. 
Death at Noonday. — -Am. 8:9; Jer. 15 : 9, 17 : 11 ; 

Ps. 55:23. 
Departing.— Ph. 1 : 23 ; 2 Co. 5 : 8 ; 2 Ti. 4 : 6. 
Dust to Dust.— Gn. 3 : 19 ; Job. 6 : 18, 7 : 21 ; Ps. 

104:29. 
Fade as a Leaf.— Is. 64:6, 1:30, 28:1; IP. 

1 : 4, 5 : 4. 
Fear of Death.— He. 2 : 15 ; Ro. 8 : 15 ; Mt. 10 : 28. 
Flying Away.— Ps. 90 : 10, 55 : 6 ; Is. 60 : 8. 
Graves Ready.— Job 17 : 1 ; Ps. 89 : 48 ; Is. 14 : 9. 
How Frail I Am.— Ps. 39:4; Job 14:2; Is. 

64:6; Ja. 1:10. 
Houses of Clay.— Job 4:19, 27:18; Ec. 12:3; 

2 Co. 5:1. 
I Would Not Live Alway— Job 7 : 16 ; Ps. 55 : 6. 
Life's Story Told.— Ps. 90:9; Ac. 5:20, 26:4. 

100 



FRAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

Night.— Jn. 9:4; Is. 21:11; Am. 5:8; 1 Th. 

5:5; Rev. 21:25. 
No Discharge in That War.— Ec. 8 : 8 ; Pr. 27 : 1. 
No Rest Here.— He. 4 : 8 ; Ps. 55 : 6 ; Mt. 11 : 28. 
for the Wings of a Dove !— Ps. 55 : 6 ; Is. 60 : 8. 
That They Were Wise!— Dt. 32:29; Ps. 107: 

43 ; Pr. 15 : 24. 
Overcharged With the Cares of Life. — Lk. 21 : 34. 
Over Jordan.— 2 S. 19 : 36 ; Jos. 1 : 11, 4: 23. 
Prepare for Death. — Jos. 1 : 11 ; Is. 38 : 1 ; Am. 

4:12. 
Shadow of Death.— Job 10 : 22 ; Ps. 23 : 4 ; Jer. 

2:6; Lk. 1 : 79. 
Sojourners Here.— 1 Ch. 29 : 15 ; Ps. 39 : 12 ; He. 

11:9; IP. 1:17. 
Steps Numbered.— Job 14:16, 31:4; Pr. 16:9. 
Swiftly.— 2 P. 1 : 14 ; Job 7 : 6, 9 : 25 ; 1 Co. 7 : 29 ; 

Rev. 22 : 20. 
The End of All.— Ec. 7:2; Jer. 5:31; Ezek. 

7:6; Ps. 37:37. 
Time is Short.— 1 Co. 7 : 29 ; Ps. 89 : 47 ; Ec. 9 : 

12; Ja. 4:14. 
The Old Garment.— 2 Co. 5:3; Zee. 3 : 4. 
The Old Tent.— 2 Co. 5:1; Ec. 12 : 3 ; Is. 38 : 12. 
The Weaver's Shuttle.— Job -7: 6; Is. 38:12. 
Thou Must Die.— Dt. 31:14; Jos. 3:4; 2K. 

20 : 1 ; He. 9 i 27. 
What is Tour Life?— Ja. 4:14; Job 7:7. 
Where is Your Hope?— Job 27 : 14; 1 Th. 4: 13; 

Ps. 16 : 9. 

101 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

A PRAYER 

Lord our God, whose days are without end 
and whose mercy is from everlasting, thou art 
the refuge of our souls and the strength of our 
life and our portion forever. We come to thee, 
we trust in thee, we love thee. Let us not be 
confounded or dismayed. 

O thou to whom belong the issues of life and 
death, look upon our afflictions, pity our infirmi- 
ties, and forgive our weaknesses. For all flesh 
is as grass and all the glory of man as the flower 
of grass. Our days upon the earth are as a 
shadow and there is none abiding. We are 
strangers with thee, and sojourners, as all our 
fathers were. spare us that we may recover 
strength, before we go hence and be no more. 

Lord, in thy goodness and great mercy, 
grant unto thy servants, these bereaved friends, 
special blessing and comfort. May this afflic- 
tion, which is but for a short time, work out 
for them a far more exceeding and eternal weight 
of glory. 

God, who holdest our souls in life and hast 
appointed unto all men once to die, make us 
deeply conscious of the frailty and shortness of 
human life and of the nearness and certainty 
of death. Prepare our minds and hearts for 
this life with all its vicissitudes and responsi- 
bilities or for death with all its mysteries and 
solemnities, and bring us finally through thy 
grace to everlasting life, world without end. 
Amen. — A. H. D. 

102 



FRAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

QUOTATIONS 
1. 

All that tread 
The globe are but a handful to the tribes 
That slumber in its bosom. 

— Bryant. 

2. 

Can storied urn or animated bust 

Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath; 
Can honor's voice provoke the silent dust, 

Or flattery soothe the dull, cold ear of death ? 

— Grey. 

3. 

All things that are on earth shall wholly pass 

away, 
Except the love of God, which shall live and last 

for aye. 

— Bryant. 

4. 

Death borders on our birth, and our cradle 
stands in our grave. — Bishop Hall. 

5. 

Death rides on every passing breeze, 
He lurks in every flower. 

— Heber. 

6. 

Death is but a path that must be trod 
If man would ever pass to God. 

— Parnell. 

103 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

7. 

"Woe, destruction, ruin, loss, decay; 
The worst is death — and death will have his day. 

— Shakespeare. 

8. 

Death is not rare, Alas ! nor burials few. 

— Bayard Taylor. 

9. 

God's finger touched him and he slept. 

— Tennyson. 

10. 

The young may die, but the old must ! 

— Longfellow. 

11. 

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day; 

Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away; 

Change and decay in all around I see- — 

thou who changeth not, abide with me. 

— Henry F. Lyte. 

12. 

Death comes with reckless footsteps 

To hall and hut : 
Think you that death will tarry, knocking, 

When the door is shut? 



13. 



Time like an ever-rolling stream, 

Bears all its sons away; 
They fly forgotten, as a dream 

Dies at the opening day. 

— Isaac Watts. 

104 



FEAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 



14. 



15. 



Stout and strong to-day, 
To-morrow turned to clay. 

• • • • • 

This day in his bloom, 
The next in the tomb. 

He liveth long who liveth well! 

All other life is short and vain ; 
He liveth longest who can tell 

Of living most for heavenly gain. 

He liveth long who liveth well! 

All else is being thrown away ; 
He liveth longest, who can tell 

Of true things truly done each day. 

— Horatious Bonar. 

16. 

We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not 

breaths ; 
In feelings, not in figures on the dial. 
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most 

lives 
Who thinks most, feels noblest, acts the best. 

— Philip Bailey. 



105 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

God to prevent all escape, hath sown the seeds 
of death in our very constitution and nature, 
so that we can as soon run away from ourselves 
as from death. — Grunall. 

b. 

Every ache and pain and wrinkle you see 
stamping itself on the brow, every accident which 
reveals the uncertain tenure of life, every funeral 
bell that tolls, are only God's reminders that 
we are tenants, at will and not by right: pen- 
sioners on the bounty of the hour — His, not ours. 
— Robertson. 

c. 

A little boy was asked by his teacher if he 
Avould like to die. "Not yet." When asked 
what he meant by "not yet," he said, "Not till 
I get a new heart." — Foster. 

d. 

What can you prove about death ? Just this : 
that death permits us to have a perfect body, 
free from all aches and pains, united forever 
with a perfect soul free from sin. When you 
see a gray hair, thank God; and when you see 
another wrinkle on your cheek, thank God; and 
when you feel another infirmity, thank God. 
What does it mean? Why, it means that mov- 
ing day is coming and that you are going to 
quit cramped apartments and be mansioned for- 
ever. — Talmage. 

106 



FRAILTY OF LIFE— DEATH 

e. 

No sex is spared, no age exempt. The ma- 
jestic and courtly road which monarchs pass 
over, the way which men of letters have trod, 
the path the warrior traverses, the short and 
simple annals of the poor — all lead to the same 
place : all terminate, however varied their routes, 
in the one enormous house which is appointed 
for all living. One short sentence closes the 
biography of every man, "And he died." Such 
is the frailty of this boasted Man. — W. M. Pun- 
shon. 

f. 

The hour of death may be fitly likened to 
that celebrated picture in the National Gallery, 
of Perseus holding up the head of Medusa — that 
head that turned all persons who looked upon 
it to stone. Such is death — it turns all to stone. 
— Spurgeon. 

Owen, on his death-bed, dictated a short letter 
to a friend. The amanuensis had written, "I 
am yet in the land of the living." "Stop," 
said Owen; "alter that and write, I am yet in 
the land of the dying, but hope soon to be in 
the land of the living." — Foster. 

h. 

Pass through life comformably to nature and 
end the journey in content. Just as a ripe olive 
falls: blessing nature, who produced it, and 
thanking the tree on which it grew. — Marcus 
Aurelius. 107 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

i. 

I have been always regarded as exceptionally 
favored by fortune, and I do not wish to com- 
plain, or find fault with the course of my life. 
But, after all, it is nothing but labor and toil; 
and I may truly say that during my seventy- 
five years I have not had four weeks of real 
comfort. It is the never-ceasing rolling of a 
stone which must always be lifted anew. — 
Goethe. 

J. 

Life is like a cathedral — where in its prime 
its strength and beauty evoke admiration, its 
walls echo to sweetly solemn strains; but in age 
the well-turned cornices crumble into dust, its 
arches fall away one by one, and its pillars fail 
to give the needed support. So the mind seems 
to be attending the funeral of its own faculties 
and mourning their untimely decay.— Prof. 
Park. 

k. 

Death is no common messenger. He comes in 
stately dignity with a majesty of tread that 
brooks no denial. In solemn silence he issues 
God 's decrees, and the face contracted with pain 
takes on a mysterious but marble-like beauty, 
and there is a quiet smile, as if rest had come 
at last.— A. H. D. 



108 



Comfort for the Bereaved 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 
1. Words of Comfort 

Blessed are they that mourn : for they shall be 
comforted. Mt. 5:4. 

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in 
God, believe also in me. In my Father's house 
are many mansions: if it were not so I would 
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will 
come again and receive you unto myself; that 
where I am, there ye may be also. . . . 

If ye love me, keep my commandments. And 
I will pray the Father, and he shall give you 
another Comforter, that he may abide with you 
forever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the 
world can not receive, because it seeth him not, 
neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he 
dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will 
not leave you comfortless; I will come to you. 
Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no 
more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall 
live also. . . . 

These things have I spoken unto you, being 
yet present with you. But the Comforter, which 
is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send 
in my name, he shall teach you all things, and 

109 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

bring all things to your remembrance, whatso- 
ever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with 
you, my peace I give unto you : not as the world 
giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be 
troubled, neither let it be afraid. Jn. 14 : 1-3, 
15-19, 25-27. 

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. 
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: 
he leadeth me beside still waters. He restoreth 
my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of right- 
eousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I 
walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy 
rod and thy staff they comfort me. Ps. 23 : 1-4. 

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God 
of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our 
tribulation. 2 Co. 1:3, 4. 



i 



Chastisement and Sorrow 

Despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, 
nor f ainf when thou art rebuked of him: For 
whom the ^ord loveth he chasteneth, and scourg- 
eth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure 
chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; 
for what son is he whom the Father chasteneth 
not ? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof 
all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not 
sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our 
flesh which corrected us, and we gave them rev- 
erence: shall we not much rather be in subjec- 

110 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

tion unto the Father of spirits and live? For 
they verily for a few days chastened us after 
their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that 
we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no 
chastening for the present seemeth to be joy- 
ous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it 
yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto 
them which are exercised thereby. He. 12 : 5-11. 

"■)[£rBut we have this treasure in earthen vessels, 
that the excellency of the power may be of God 
and not of us. We are troubled on every side, 
yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in 
despair ; Persecuted, but not forsaken ; cast down 
but not destroyed ; Always bearing about in the 
body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life 
also of Jesus might be made manifest in our 
body. For we which live are alway delivered 
unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also 
of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal 
flesh. So then death worketh in us, but life 
in you. "We having the same spirit of faith, 
according as it is written, I believed and there- 
fore have I spoken; we also believe, and there- 
fore speak; knowing that he which raised up 
the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, 
and shall present us with you. . . . For 
which cause we faint not; but though our out- 
ward man perish, yet the inward man is re- 
newed day by day. For our light affliction 
which is but for a moment, worketh for us a 
far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 
2 Oo. 4:7-14, 16, 17. 

Ill 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

i 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

Solace for Troubled Hearts — Jn. 14 : 1. 

Sept. Sel. 1. 

Let not your hearts be troubled: ye believe 
in God, believe also in me. 

Man a creature of sorrow and trouble — man 's 
peculiar heritage. Ps. 90 : 10 ; Job 5:7, 14 : 1 ; 
Ec. 2:23. 

1. Man's sad heritage of sorrow not hopeless, 
a. It argues superior capacities and endowments 
of soul life. q. 1, 2, 4. b. It argues that an all- 
wise and an all-loving Creator should provide 
some solace or cordial for sorrow. Is. 51 : 12. 
q. 1, 3, 8. 

2. Jesus God's chosen Agent to present this 
only true solace to the world. Is. 61 : 1, 2 ; Lk. 
4: 16-21. He offers heaven's remedy freely to all 
— his love, sacrifice, sympathy, healing, and help. 
Lk. 7 : 11-15 ; Jn. 11 : 33-44 ; Mt. 11 : 28, 29. 

3. Of all sorrows and troubles, none so dis- 
tracting and despairing as those caused by death. 
Jesus was facing death and his disciples despair. 
Soon he would be on the cross and his disciples 
scattered; hence he says, "Let not," etc. Jn. 
16:6, 22. I. a, c, f. q. 9. 

4. Faith in God and Jesus Christ His Son is 
the solace for troubled hearts. God, Christ, 
heaven are the great words at such a time, 
q. 5, 6. I. e. 

— Edward Baech. 



112 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

Comfort all That Mourn — Is. 61 : 2. 

Sept. Sel. 2. 
To comfort all that mourn, 

1. Mourning for the dead is common to all 
the race of mankind — began with mother Eve; 
has continued through all ages and among all 
peoples, q. 2, 9. Never get used to the sorrow 
and separation caused by death, q. 10. Gn. 
37:35; Jer. 31:15. 

2. We should thank God for the power to love 
and to mourn. Not like brute-beasts; man is 
godlike in love, sorrow, and all soul life. q. 4, 8. 
Shows all the finer qualities of the soul. Jn. 
11:31, 35. 

3. Special mission of Jesus, as announced by 
himself was, "to heal the broken-hearted, ' ' Lk. 
4:18, and to "comfort all that mourn," Is. 
61 : 2 ; Mt. 5 : 4. Definition of word ' ' comfort, ' ' 
see I. e. Jesus cares. I. c. He is the Great 
Comforter. Jn. 14 : 1, 2. q. 7. Other com- 
forters — friends. Jn. 11 : 31. Holy Spirit. Jn. 
14:16. q. 3. 

4. He comforts with hopes of future life, and 
meeting our loved ones there. Jn. 11 : 25 ; Mt. 
5:4. q. 1, 5, 6. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



113 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Tears Wiped Away — Rev. 21:4. 

And God shall wipe away all tears from their 
eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any 
more pain: for the former things are passed 
away. 

Death comes sometimes with ruthless hand 
to crush the bud of life, scarcely yet started to 
unfold, and sometimes as a reaper, gathering 
home like ripened sheaves the lives which have 
been blessed with faith and hope. To such how 
comforting is this description of the better land ! 
I see in it 

I. A Picture of God — "God shall wipe away 
all tears from their eyes." Not power omnipo- 
tent swinging worlds to their orbits, but a loving 
heart of infinite compassion, tenderness, and 
sympathy. That 's the Christian's God. q. 7, 8. 

II. A Picture of Heaven — "There shall be 
no more death, ' ' etc. Causes of grief gone — for- 
ever. The moan and wail of sorrow heard no 
more. q. 1. 

III. A Picture of New Conditions— " The 
former things are passed away." The disturber 
is gone. Sin is banished. God will brush the 
tear away but once and forever. Saints wel- 
comed to new, harmonious, and happier condi- 
tions. Heaven is not a continuance of bearable 
conditions of earth — Heaven is new! Heaven 
is new. q. 9. I. d. 

— Prank E. Day. 
114 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

A Comforting Invitation.— Mt. 11:28; Ps. 101: 

2 ; Rev. 22 : 17. 
A Father of the Fatherless.— Ps. 68 : 5, 146 : 9 ; 

Jer. 49 : 11. 
Affliction — Momentary ; Glory — Eternal. — 2 Co. 

4:17. 
Another Comforter.— Jn. 14:16-18; Is. 51:12. 
As a Father Pitieth.— Ps. 103 : 13 ; Mai. 3 : 17. 
As a Mother Comforteth.— Is. 66 : 12, 51 : 12. 
Blessed Are They That Mourn.— Mt. 5:4; Lk. 

6 : 21 ; Jer. 31 : 13. 
Broken-Hearted.— Is. 61 : 1 ; Lk. 4:18; Ps. 147 : 3. 
Explained Hereafter.— Jn. 13:7; 1 Co. 13:12. 
God Gave and Hath Taken.— Job 1:21, 5:18; 

Ps. 147:3. 
God Our Refuge.— Dt. 33 : 27 ; Ps. 121 : 2, 60 : 11. 
His Grace Sufficient.— 2 Co. 12:9; Dt. 33:25. 
I Shall Go to Him.— 2 S. 12:23; Jn. 14:2. 
It Is Well.— 2 K. 4:26; Job 2:10; Ac. 21:14. 
Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled.— Jn. 14:1. 
Light in the Clouds.— Job 37:21; Ex. 14:20; 

Lk. 9 : 34. 
My Sorrow.— La. 1 : 12 ; Jer. 31 : 12 ; Rev. 21 : 4. 
Mourning for a Mother.— Ps. 35: 14; Is. 66: 13. 
Mourning for a Son.— Jer. 6 : 26 ; 2 S. 18 : 33 ; 

Lk. 7 : 12. 
Mourning Turned to Joy. — Jer. 31 : 13 ; Is. 14 : 3. 
Mutual Comfort.— 2 Co. 1:4; Is. 57 : 18 ; 1 Th. 

4:18. 
Not Comfortless.— Jn. 14:18; Is. 51:12; 2 Co. 

1:4. 

115 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Not Dead, But Sleeping.— Lk. 8:52; Jn. 11: 

11-13; ITh. 4:13. 
Refused to be Comforted. — On. 37 : 35 ; Jer. 

31:15. 
Sorrow Not Without Hope.— 1 Th. 4:13; He. 

6:19;Mk. 16:10. 
Submission.— Job 2:10; Is. 45 : 9 ; Ps. 46 : 10. 
The Bitter Cup.— Mt. 26 : 39, 20 : 22 ; Jer. 25 : 17. 
The Compassionate Christ. — Lk. 7 : 13 ; Ps. 86 : 

15; Jn. 11:33. 
The Hiding of His Hand.— Jn. 13:7; 1 Co. 13: 

12; 2 Co. 3:18. 
The Judge of the Widow.— Ps. 68 : 5 ; Jer. 49 : 

11; Dt. 10:18. 
The Mother of Sorrows.— Lk. 2:35; Jn. 19: 

25-27. 
The Seen and the Unseen.— 2 Co. 4:18; Ro. 

8:24; IP. 1:8. 
The Shadow of Death — Morning. — Am. 5:8: 

Zech. 14:7; Ps. 23. 
The Unfailing Friend.— Jos. 1:5; Ps. 27:10; 

Pr. 18:24. 
The Universal Question.— Mk. 16:3; Job 38 : 17 ; 

Hos. 13 : 14. 
The Widow's Trust.— Jer. 49:11; Ps. 68:5, 

146 : 9. 
Temporal and Eternal.— 2 Co. 4:18; Gal. 6:8; 

He. 9 : 15. 
They Comfort Me.— Ps. 23 : 4 ; 2 Co. 1 : 2, 3. 
Thy Will Be Done.— Mt. 6:10; Ac. 21:14. 
Useless Weeping.— Mk. 16: 10; Jn. 20: 15; 1 Th. 

4:13. 

116 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

A PRAYER 

God, who art in heaven, we thank thee that 
thou art, too, upon earth. We rejoice, and our 
hearts take comfort, that thou art not afar off, 
but near — as near as our need. 

We thank thee that thou art the God of our 
joy, that when hope is high, and care is light 
and gladness is ours, we may look into thy face 
and thank thee for thy goodness. But, God, 
we rejoice, too, that clouds of sorrow can not 
hide thee. We would rest in thee; no other- 
where, for our souls can rest be found. We do 
not understand all thy providences, but give us 
such union of sympathy with thee that we may 
know in part and trust thee for the great re- 
mainder. We stagger and fall if we toavfc not 
faith in thee. 

We stand to-day in the presence of a great 
mystery. Help us now to believe that thou 
standest behind the shadow keeping watch above 
thine own. Comfort our hearts with thoughts 
of heaven. 

Give, God, thy sufficient comfort to those 
whose hearts are too heavily burdened! We 
wander, Lord, unless thou dost lead ; we hope- 
lessly mourn unless thou dost aid, we sorrow with 
grief unassuaged unless thou dost draw near and 
lift up our heads. May we hear thy voice and 
know thy help; do thou speak and touch and 
heal the broken hearts. May his peace be with 
us all. Amen. — John Paul Stafford. 

117 



1. 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 
QUOTATIONS 

The path of sorrow, and that path alone, 
Leads to the land where sorrow is unknown. 

— Cowper. 

Men die, but sorrow never dies ; 

The crowding years divide in vain, 
And the wide world is knit with ties 

Of common brotherhood in pain. 

— Susan Coolidge. 

With silence only as their benediction, 

God's angels come 
Where in the shadow of a great affliction 

The soul sits dumb ! 

— Whittier. 



I know well 
That they who love their friends most tenderly 
Still bear their loss the best. There is in love 
A consecrated power that seems to wake 
Only at the touch of death from its repose 
In the profoundest depths of thinking souls. 



3. 



5. 



Why do we mourn for dying friends, 
Or shake at death's alarms? 

'T is but the voice that Jesus sends 
To call them to his arms. 

— Isaac Watts. 

118 



6. 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 



Jesus, while our hearts are bleeding 
O ? er the spoils that death has won, 

We would at this solemn meeting 
Calmly say, ' ' Thy will be done. ' ' 

By thy hands the boon was given, 
Thou hast taken but thine own : 

Lord of earth and God of heaven, 
Evermore "Thy will be done." 

— Thomas Hastings. 



7. 



The heart that looks on when eyelids close, 
And dares to live when life has only woes, 
God's comfort knows. 

— Edward Bulwer-Lytton. 

8. 

God's ichor fills the hearts that bleed; 
The best fruit loads the broken bough ; 
And, in the wounds our sufferings plough, 
Immortal love sows sovereign seed. 

— Gerald Massey. 



9. 



The air is full of farewells for the dying ; 

And mournings for the dead; 
The heart of Rachel, for her children crying, 

"Will not be comforted ! 

Let us be patient ! These severe afflictions 

Not from the ground arise ; 
But oftentimes celestial benedictions 

Assume a dark disguise. 
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PASTOK'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

We see but dimly through the mists and 
vapors ; 
Amid these earthly damps 
What seems to us but sad, funereal tapers 
May be heaven's distant lamps. 

— Longfellow. 

10. 

But for the touch of a vanished hand; 
And the sound of a voice that is still ! 

— Tennyson. 

11. 

It were double grief if the true-hearted, 

Who loved us here, should, on the other shore, 

Remember us no more. 

12. 

Alone each heart must cover up its dead ; 

Alone through bitter toil, achieve its rest. 

— Bayard Taylor. 
13. 

I would not know 

Which of us, darling, will be first to go. 
I only wish the space may not be long 
Between the parting and the greeting song ; 
But when, or where, or how we 're called to go, 
I would not know. 

— Julia Harris May. 



120 



COMFORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

Think not because you suffer that you are 
not chosen. As Christ was made perfect in His 
work through His suffering, so are we thus to 
be led. Jesus takes those whom He loves into 
Gethsemane, and farther. — W. M. Taylor. 

b. 

When I am in sorrow, and doubt, and dark- 
ness, I go to the window and look toward the 
heavens, and if I see a cloud I think of those 
precious words, "A cloud received him out of 
their sight/ ■ and then I think, That may be 
the cloud that hides Him. And I find comfort 
in the cloud. 

c. 

The mourner may always count on the sym- 
pathy of Jesus. At the grave of Lazarus He 
thought not of Mary and Martha alone. There 
sounded in His ears the dirge and moan of 
human misery in every age. So " Jesus wept," 
and his tears of love became the legacy of every 
sorrowing soul. 

d. 

The Thracians wept whenever a child was 
born, and feasted whenever a man went out of 
the world; and with reason. Death opens the 
gate of fame and shuts the gate of envy after 
it ; it unlooses the chain of the captive and puts 
the bondsman's task into another man's hand. 
• — Sterne. 

121 



PASTOB'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

e. 

Our word comfort is derived from two Latin 
words, con, together, and fortis, strong, made 
strong together. It is not the taking away of 
sorrow, altogether, but rather the transforming 
and transfiguring of it by the help of Christ, 
our fellow-sufferer and sympathizer. 

f. 

A dear girl lay dying; the pastor was speak- 
ing words of comfort to her. Her mother, over- 
come with grief, was weeping at the bedside. 
The girl with great effort said to the pastor, 
"0, sir, I am all right, but please comfort 
mother !" The living often need more comfort 
than the dying. 

g. 

There is, it is said, an island in a distant 
sea from whose shores the fishermen sail to pro- 
cure the treasures of the deep. During their 
absence thick mists often descend and cover the 
highland, cliff, and beacon with so thick a veil 
that these hardy mariners are left without a 
mark by which to steer their laden barks. But 
they are not left to wander unguided on the 
pathless sea. When the time for their return 
arrives the women of the island — wives, mothers, 
and sisters — descend to the shores and raise the 
voice of song. Borne on the quiet air, their 
voices soon fall sweetly on ears of the loved 
ones at sea. Guided by the well-known sounds, 
they steer their boats in safety to the shore. 

122 



COMPORT FOR THE BEREAVED 

And thus to thee, Christian ! comes the voices 
of love from the celestial shore, as thou wan- 
derest, a bewildered child of tribulation, on the 
misty sea of life. 

h. 

Thou hast lost a friend ; say rather, thou hast 
parted with him. He has only gone home a 
little before thee: thou art following him. You 
shall meet again in your Father's house and en- 
joy each other more happily than you could 
have done here below. Do you think that the 
souls of our friends will vanish into air, as a 
heathen poet profanely expresses it, and their 
bodies resolve into dust, without any possibility 
of reparation? We might cry our eyes out for 
the utter extinction of those we loved. But, if 
they do but sleep, they shall do well. Why are 
we impatient at their silent repose in the bed of 
death, when we are assured of their awaking to 
glory ?— Bishop Hall. 

i. 

When thousands were waiting to welcome Ad- 
miral Togo to Yokohama after his victorious sea 
fights, he requested his own son not to meet the 
conquering fleet, because so many parents had 
lost sons that it would remind them too pain- 
fully of their own losses to hear of the meeting 
of the admiral and his son. — A. H. D. 



123 



Immortality 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. The Question Stated 

If a man die shall he live again ? (Job 14 : 14.) 
Man that is born of a woman is of few days, 
and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a 
flower and is cut down : he fleeth also as a 
shadow, and continueth not. And dost thou 
open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest 
me into judgment with thee? "Who can bring a 
clean thing out of an unclean? not one. Seeing 
his days are determined, the number of his 
months are with thee, thou hast appointed his 
bounds that he can not pass. Turn from him, 
that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an 
hireling, his day. For there is no hope of a tree, 
if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and 
that the tender branch thereof will not cease. 
Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, 
and the stock thereof die in the ground; yet 
through the scent of water it will bud, and bring 
forth boughs like a plant. But man dieth and 
wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost 
and where is he? As the waters fail from the 

124 



IMMORTALITY 

sea, and the flood decay eth and drieth up: so 
man lieth down and riseth not: till the heavens 
be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised 
out of their sleep. . . . 

The waters wear the stones: thou washeth 
away the things which grow out of the dust of 
the earth ; and thou destroyest the hope of man. 
Thou prevailest forever against him, and he 
passeth: thou changest his countenance, and 
sendest him away. Job. 14 : 1-12, 19, 20. 

We brought nothing into this world and it 
is certain we can carry nothing out. 1 Ti. 6 : 7. 

The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; 
blessed be the name of the Lord. Job 1 : 21. 

2. The Christian's Hope 

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he 
shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 
And though after my skin worms destroy this 
body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom 
I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall be- 
hold, and not another. Job 19 : 25-27. 

For we know that if our earthly house of this 
tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building 
of God, an house not made with hands, eternal 
in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly 
desiring to be clothed upon with our house 
which is from heaven : If so be that being clothed 
we shall not be found naked. For we that are 
in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: 
not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed 
upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of 
life. Now he that hath wrought us for the self- 

125 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

same thing is God, who also hath given unto us 
the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are 
always confident, knowing that, whilst we are 
at home in the body, we are absent from the 
Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight.) 
We are confident, I say, and willing rather to 
be absent from the body, and to be present with 
the Lord. Wherefore we labor that, whether 
present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 
2 Co. 5:1-9. 

I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, 
concerning them which are asleep, that ye sor- 
row not, even as others which have no hope. 
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 
even so them also which sleep in Jesus will G-od 
bring with him. For this we say unto you 
by the word of the Lord, that we which are 
alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord 
shall not prevent them which are asleep. For 
the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with 
a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and 
with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ 
shall rise first : Then we which are alive and re- 
main shall be caught up together with them in 
the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so 
shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore 
comfort one another with these words. 1 Th. 
4:13-18. 



126 



IMMOETALITY 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

The Question of the Ages. — Job 14 : 14. 

Sept. Sel. 1. 

If a man die shall Tie live again? 

Life is full of interrogation points — child and 
man alike. Whence? What? Why? Whither? 
vr. 10. 

1. Text, The question of the ages. Universal 
and profound. Asked by every age, clime, na- 
tion, individual, saint and sinner, priest and 
prophet, poet and philosopher. Plato, etc. q. 6. 

2. A reasonable question — we have a right to 
know. Because it affects life here and hereafter. 
Is. 22 : 13 ; 1 Co. 15 : 32 ; 2 Co. 5:1-9; Lk. 12 : 19 ; 
Eev. 22 : 11. Because of man's capacity to suffer 
or enjoy. Lk. 16 : 25 ; Ps. 16 : 11, 17 : 15 ; Rev. 
3:21. 

3. We have reason to expect an affirmative 
answer. Nature's answer. Job 14:7-9. q. 3, 4. 
I. c, f, g. Revelation's answer. 0. T. — Job 
19 : 23 ; Ps. 16 : 9-11 ; Is. 26 : 19 ; Dn. 12 : 2. 
N. T.— Mk. 8 : 35-37 ; Lk. 12 : 4 ; 2 Ti. 1 : 10 ; 1 Co. 
15:53; Jn. 3:16, 10:28, 11:25, 14:1-6; 1 Co. 
15 ; 2 Co. 5. In this hope we bury our friends. 

1 Th. 4: 13. And in this faith we die ourselves, 

2 Co. 5:8, 9. 

—A. H. D. 

NOTES. 



127 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Seeking for Immortality — Ro. 2 : 7. 

Sept. Sel. 1 or 2. 

To them ivho seek for immortality. 

The quest of the ages. Job 14:14. q. 8, 11. 
I. h. Is man immortal? Deny God, then there 
is no answer. Admit God and all is easy — the 
answer is, YES. "What are some of the indica- 
tions of immortality? 

1. The soul's desire and expectation — a 
prophecy of the fact. q. 1, 6. God creates no 
desire to mock it. I. b. q. 3, 13. 2 Co. 5:4; 
1 Co. 15 : 53. 

2. The justice of God demands it. Time short 
— eternity needed to mete out justice by the law 
of compensation. Some time God will make all 
right. Ps. 89 : 14 ; Gn. 18 : 25 ; 2 Ti. 4 : 8. 

3. Nature of the soul. Not of earth. I. a. 
Breath of God. Gn. 2:7. Offspring of God. 
Ac. 17 : 28 ; Ec. 12 : 7. Its power to think and 
know spiritual things. Its power to will and 
choose duty and destiny. Its power to create 
picture, poem, bridge, house. Its power to love 
and hate. q. 5. Love lives beyond. Its power 
to suffer and enjoy, q. 7. I. c, f . 

4. The value of the soul — its redemption price. 
Ps. 49 : 8. The death of Christ. Jn. 3:16; Is. 
53 : 3-11 ; Mt. 16 : 26. God does not create to de- 
stroy, but to save. 

5. Immortality declared by revelation, q. 2. 
Job 19:25, 26; Ps. 133:3; Ec. 12:7; 1 Co. 15: 
53, 54. 2 Ti. 1 : 10. q. 9, or 12, or 14. 

— Allen P. DeLong. 
128 



IMMOETALITY 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

A Crown of Life.— Rev. 2 : 10 ; 1 Co. 9 : 25. 
Alive for Evermore.— Rev. 1 : 18 ; Ps. 133 : 3. 
Assurance Forever. — Is. 32 : 17 ; Ac. 17 : 31. 
Blessed Are the Dead.— Rev. 14:13; Ec. 4:2. 
Captivity Captive.— Ps. 68:18; Eph. 4:8. 
Christ's Triumph Over Death.— Rev. 11:18. 
Dead Men Shall Live.— Is. 26 : 19 ; Jn. 5 : 25. 
Dead, Yet Speaking.— He. 11 : 4, 9 : 16, 17. 
Death No Hiding Place.— Job 34 : 22 ; Is. 28 : 18. 
Destruction of Death. — Hos. 13 : 14 ; 1 Co. 15 : 

54; Rev. 20:14. 
Dwellers in the Dust.— Is. 26 : 19 ; Ezek. 37 : 3. 
Eternal Life.— Jn. 3:16, 10:28, 17:3; 1 Jn. 

5:11. 
Ever With the Lord.— 1 Th. 4:17; Jn. 14:3; 

ITh. 5:10. 
From Death to Life.— 1 Jn. 3:14; 2 Co. 4:12; 

Jn. 10:10. 
Gathered to His People.— Gn. 25 : 8, 35 : 29. 
I Know That My Redeemer Liveth. — Job 19 : 25 ; 

Jn. 11 : 25. 
I Shall Be Satisfied.— Ps. 17:15, 36:8, 65:4. 
Judge of the Quick and Dead.— Ac. 10 : 42 ; 2 Ti. 

4:1. 
Life and Death Ours.— 1 Co. 3:22; Ro. 8:38. 
Life for Evermore.— Ps. 133 : 3 ; He. 7 : 16. 
Life from the Dead.— Ro. 11:15; Jn. 12:24; 

1 Co. 15 : 53, 54. 
Light in the Shadow of Death.— Job 12:22; 

Lk. 1 : 79. 
Lord of the Living.— Ro. 14: 9; Mt. 22: 32; He. 

11 : 19. 129 

9 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Mortality Swallowed Up of Life.— 2 Co. 5: 4; Is. 

25:8. 
No More Death.— Rev. 21:4; He. 2:14; 2 Ti. 

1:10. 
Precious Death.— Ps. 116:15; Ec. 4:2; Rev. 

14:13. 
Redeemed from the Grave. — Ps. 49 : 15 ; Hos. 13 : 

14; ICo. 15. 
Seeking the Living Among the Dead. — Lk. 24 : 5 ; 

Jn. 20:2-10. 
Shall Never See Death.— Jn. 8 : 51, 52, 11 : 26 ; 

He. 11 : 5. 
The Bundle of Life.— 1 S. 25:29; Dt. 30:15. 
The Dead Shall Hear His Voice.— Jn. 5 : 25-29 ; 

Ac. 17:31. 
The God of the Living.— Mt. 22:32; Ro. 14:9; 

Ac. 10:36. 
The Hope of the Righteous.— Pr. 14:32; Nu. 

23 : 10. 
The Living Hope.— (R. V.) IP. 1:3, 4; Col. 

1:5; He. 6:11. 
The Path of Life.— Ps. 16:11; Mt. 7:14; Pr. 

15:24. 
The Question of the Ages. — Job 14 : 14 ; Ezek. 

37 : 12. 
Victory in Death.— Is. 25: 8; Hos. 13: 14; 1 Co. 

15:55-57. 
With Christ Living or Dying.— Ro. 6:8; 2 Ti. 

2:11. 
We Shall Not Die.— Hab. 1: 12; Lk. 20: 36; Jn. 

6:50. 
Works Follow.— Rev. 14:13, 20:13; Ro. 14:7. 

130 



IMMORTALITY 

A PRAYER 

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, we bless 
thee that though we are always dying, yet we 
can not die: thou hast given us immortality in 
our Lord Jesus Christ. He stands to-day within 
the shadows near all our Christian dead, saying, 
"Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall 
never die. ' ' Our bodies may fall into the grave 
but our spirits shall rise and praise thee in other 
worlds, duration without end. This is our faith, 
this is our hope, and this shall be our blessed 
realization. 

Sanctify to us our sorrows, our bereavements, 
and our cares. May our tears be the showers 
that water the springs of our spiritual life. 
May we know that thou dost not afflict willingly 
nor grieve the children of men. Teach us sub- 
mission to thy will in all things. Out of the 
clouds and darkness may we ever hear the music 
of thy voice with its benedictions of love and 
peace. 

Help us to know that thou hast conquered 
death and brought life and immortality to light 
through the gospel, that death to thy children is 
but the doorway to a broader, fuller, and more 
perfect life — a life of holy fellowship with thee 
and the spirits of those who have died in the 
faith of the gospel. 

And now, Lord, living or dying we put our- 
selves in thy blessed keeping; forgive all our 
sins and bring us to everlasting life through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. — A. H. D. 

131 



PASTOE'S IDEAL FUNEEAL BOOK 

QUOTATIONS 

All men desire to be immortal. 
9 — Theodore Parker. 

Immortality is the glorious discovery of Chris- 
tianity. — Channing. 

3. 

God does not disappoint a caterpillar and the 
worm gets its wings. — Colbern. 



Immortality 
Alone can teach this mortal how to die. 

— D. M. Mulock. 



5. 



Must in death your daylight finish? 
My sun sets to rise again. 

— Browning. 



6. 



The stars shall shine for a thousand years, 

A thousand years and a day ; 
But God and I will love and live 
"When the stars are passed away. 

— Anon. 
7. 

It must be so — Plato, thou reasonest well! — 
Else why this pleasing hope, this fond desire, 
This longing for immortality? 
Or whence this secret dread, and inward horror, 
Of falling into nought? Why shrinks the soul 
Back on herself and startles at destruction? 

132 



IMMORTALITY 

'T is the divinity that stirs within us ; 

'T is heaven itself that points out the hereafter 

And intimates Eternity to man. 

— Addison. 

8. 

In his desire for immortality man has sure 
proof of his capacity for it. — Southey. 

9. 

Give me no guess for the dying pillow. 

— Joseph Cook. 

10. 

The stars shall fade away, the sun himself 
Grow dim with age, and nature sink in years, 
But thou shalt flourish in immortal youth, 
Unhurt amidst the war of elements, 
The wreck of matter, and the crush of worlds. 

— Addison. 

11. 

One sleep past and we shall wake eternally, 
And death shall be no more: Death, thou shalt 
die. 

— Donne. 



12. 



Whatever crazy sorrow saith, 

No life that breathes with human breath 

Hath ever truly longed for death; 

'T is life, not death, for which we pant, 

More life, and fuller, that I want. 

— Tennyson. 

133 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

13, 

Hearken! Hearken! God speaketh in thy soul, 
Saying, thou that movest 
With feeble step across this earth of mine, 
To break beside the fount thy golden bowl, 

And spill its purple wine, 
Look up to heaven and see how, like a scroll, 
My right hand hath grasped immortality 
In its eternal grasping. 

— Elizabeth B. Browning. 

14. 

It needs not that I swear by the sunset redness, 
And by the night with its gatherings, 
And by the moon when at her full, 
That from state to state ye shall be surely car- 
ried onward. 

— Koran. 



15. 



16. 



For though from out the bourne of time 
and place 
The flood may bear me far, 
I hope to see my Pilot face to face 
When I have crost the bar. 

— Tennyson. 

O change — stupendous change! 
There lies the soulless clod! 
The sun eternal breaks: 
The new immortal wakes — 
Wakes with his God. 

— Caroline B. Southey. 
134 



IMMORTALITY 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

A story is told of a landsman, who had never 
seen the sea or a boat, visiting for the first time 
a shipyard where a ship, just completed, was in 
the stocks. Looking at it in wonder, he said. 
"What a strange house, with its floor on top 
and its roof on the bottom!" After a moment's 
reflection, he exclaimed, "That thing was never 
built to stay here." When on launching day 
he saw it glide into its natural element, he said, 
"I told you so." So with the soul of man — 
it was never built to stay here. — A. H. D. 

b. 

Nature makes no half hinges. God does not 
create a desire to mock it. The structure of the 
human constitution is not an organized lie. The 
Creator keeps his word with us. 

Wherever we find a wing, we find air to match 
it ; a fin, water to match it ; an eye, light to match 
it ; an ear, sound to match it ; perception of the 
beautiful, beauty to match it ; and so through all 
the myriads of known cases. From our posses- 
sion of a constitutional instinct we expect ex- 
istence after death. — Joseph Cook. 

c. 

I feel in myself the future life. I am like 
a forest once cut down — the new shoots are 
stronger and livelier than ever. I am rising, I 
know, toward the sky. The sunshine is on my 

135 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNEKAL BOOK 

head. The earth gives me generous sap, but 
heaven lights me with the reflection of the un- 
known world. — Victor Hugo. 

d. 

The Phoenix, a fabled bird of antiquity, when 
it felt the advancing chill of age, built its own 
funeral pyre and fired it. All its plumage, form, 
and beauty became ashes. But from these ashes 
of death it was reputed to rise again in youthful 
beauty and with brighter plumage. Spreading 
its broad, dark velvet wings sprinkled with gold 
and fringed with silver, with a cry of joy it 
would fly upward to meet the morning sun. So 
with the soul at dsath — it flies upward to meet 
the Sun of righteousness. — A. H. D. 

e. 

For years previous to 1846 it had been known 
that the planet Uranus was subject to certain 
perturbations in its orbit which could not be 
accounted for. From the nature and amount 
of these perturbations, LeVerrier, the French 
astronomer and mathematician, demonstrated the 
existence of another undiscovered planet, and 
so completely did he determine its place in the 
heavens that Dr. Galle, of Berlin University, 
pointed his telescope to the place indicated and 
found the planet Neptune. So with the human 
soul in its attractions toward immortality and 
its continued love for those who are dead. — 
Matthison. 

136 



L 



IMMORTALITY 

f. 

You say that the soul is nothing but the re- 
sultant of the bodily powers ? Then, why is my 
soul more luminous when my bodily powers be- 
gin to fail? Winter on my head, but eternal 
springtime in my heart. The nearer I approach 
the end the plainer I hear around me the im- 
mortal symphonies of the worlds which invite 
me. — Victor Hugo. 

f- 

There is, I know not how, in the minds of 

men a certain presage, as it were, of a future 

existence; and this takes the deepest root, and 

is most discoverable, in the greatest geniuses and 

most exalted souls. — Cicero. 

h. 

As all people feel that they must die, each 
seeks immortality on earth, that he may be had 
in everlasting remembrance. Some great princes 
and kings seek it by raising columns of stone, 
and high pyramids, great churches, costly and 
glorious palaces, etc. Soldiers hunt after praise 
and honor by obtaining famous victories. The 
learned seek undying name by writing books. 
"With these and such like things people think 
to be immortal. — Luther. 



137 



Resurrection 



SCKIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. Christ 's Own Words 

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe 
in God, believe also in me. In my Father's 
house are many mansions: if it were not so I 
would have told you. I go to prepare a place 
for you. And if I go and prepare a place for 
you, I will come again and receive you unto 
myself; that where I am there ye may be also. 
. . • Yet a little while, and the world seeth 
me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye 
shall live also. Jn. 14 : 1-3, 19. 

I am the resurrection and the life: he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall 
he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in 
me shall never die. Jn. 11 : 25, 26. 

Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is 
coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear 
the voice of the Son of God : and they that hear 
shall live. Marvel not at this: for the hour is 
coming, in the which all that are in the graves 
shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they 
that have done good, unto the resurrection of 
life : and they that have done evil unto the resur- 
rection of damnation. Jn. 5 : 25, 28, 29. 

138 



RESURRECTION 

And this is the will of him that sent me, that 
every one which seeth the Son, and believeth 
on him, may have everlasting life: and I will 
raise him up at the last day. . . . 

I am the living Bread which came down from 
heaven : if any man eat of this bread, he shall 
live forever: and the bread that I will give is 
my flesh, which I will give for the life of the 
world. Jn. 6:40, 51. 

Fear not ; I am the first and the last : I am he 
that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am 
alive for evermore, Amen ; and have the keys of 
hell and death. Rev. 1 : 17, 18. 

Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from 
henceforth : Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may 
rest from their labors and their works do follow 
them. Rev. 14:13. 

2. Paul's Words 

Now if Christ be preached that he rose from 
the dead, how say some among you that there 
is no resurrection of the dead? But if there 
be no resurrection of the dead then is Christ 
not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is 
our preaching vain, and your faith also is vain. 
Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God ; 
because we have testified of God that he raised 
up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that 
the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then 
is Christ not raised : And if Christ be not raised 
your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. 

139 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ 
are perished. If in this life only we have hope 
in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But 
now is Christ risen from the dead and become the 
first-f raits of them that slept. 1 Co. 15 : 12-20. 

But I would not have you to be ignorant, 
brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that 
ye sorrow not, even as others which have no 
hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and 
rose again, even so them also which sleep in 
Jesus will God bring with him. For this we 
say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we 
which are alive and remain unto the coming of 
the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven 
with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, 
and with the trump of God: and the dead in 
Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive 
and remain shall be caught up together with 
them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air : 
and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 1 Th. 
4:13-17. 

Now the God of peace, that brought again 
from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shep- 
herd of the sheep, through the blood of the 
everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every 
good work to do his will, working in you that 
which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus 
Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. 
Amen. Heb. 13 : 20, 21. 



140 



EESURRECTION 

3. The Glorified Body 

But some man will say, How are the dead 
raised up? and with what body do they come? 
Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quick- 
ened, except it die : And that which thou sowest, 
thou sowest not that body that shall be, but 
bare grain, it may chance of wheat or some 
other grain: But God giveth it a body as it 
hath pleased him, and to every seed his own 
body. . . . 

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is 
sown in corruption; it is raised in incorrup- 
tion: It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in 
glory: It is sown in weakness; it is raised in 
power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised 
a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and 
there is a spiritual body. . . . 

The first man is of the earth, earthy: the 
second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the 
earthy such are they also that are earthy: and 
as is the heavenly, such are they also that are 
heavenly. 

And as we have borne the image of the earthy, 
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood 
can not inherit the kingdom of God ; neither 
doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold 
I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, 
but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in 
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump : for 
the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be 
raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 

141 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, 
and this mortal must put on immortality. So 
when this corruptible shall have put on incor- 
ruption, and this mortal shall have put on im- 
mortality, then shall be brought to pass the say- 
ing that is written, Death is swallowed up in 
victory. death, where is thy sting ? grave, 
where is thy victory ? The sting of death is sin ; 
and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks 
be to God, which giveth us the victory through 
our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved 
brethren, be ye steadfast, immovable, always 
abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as 
ye know that your labor is not in vain in the 
Lord. 1 Co. 15 : 35-38, 42-44, 47-58. 



142 



RESURRECTION 

TOPICS, TEXTS, AND OUTLINES 

The Glorified Body — 1 Co. 15 : 35. 

Sept. Sel. 3. 

With what hody do they come? 

No one but the Lord Christ can clear the 
resurrection of all its mysteries. Rev. 1 : 18. 
But it is not incredible. Ac. 26 : 8 ; Jn. 11 : 
25-42. Nature has its resurrections, q. 1, 5. 
I. a. Nothing too hard for God. Jer. 32 : 17, 27 ; 
Ezek. 37 : 1-10. 

1. Glorified body different from the one put 
into the grave. See 1 Co. 15:36-50. vr. 37. 
May have &Dme connection and likeness to the 
old body, but must be different, vr. 53. q. 3, 2. 

2. The glorified body is the gift of God. vr. 
38. Life seems to need a body for its mani- 
festation. 2 Co. 5:2, 3. Suited to needs of the 
soul. 

3. So much better than the old body. 1 Co. 
15:42-54. Paul's striking contrasts: corruption 
— incorruption ; dishonor — glory ; weakness — 
power; natural — spiritual; living soul — quicken- 
ing spirit ; earthy — heavenly ; death — victory. 
Like unto his own glorious body. Ph. 3:21; Mk. 
9:3; Rev. 1 : 14. I. a, c, d. Benediction. 1 P. 
1 : 3-5. —A. H. D. 



143 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

The Earthly Tent and the Heavenly House 
—2 Co. 5 : 1. Sept. Sel. 2 or 3. 

For we knoiv that if our earthly house of this 
tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of 
God, an house not made with hands, eternal in 
the heavens. 

1. Paul the champion preacher of the resur- 
rection. His Epistles full of argument and il- 
lustration. 1 Co. 15, etc. ; 1 Th. 4 : 13-18. Text 
draws striking contrasts: " earthly-tabernacle ' ' 
— ' € eternal-house. ' ' 

2. The earthly house — body : a. Distinct from 
its tenant, the soul. 2 Co. 5:6. q. 3. I. e. The 
body decays. 2 Co. 4 : 16. The soul endures. 
2 Co. 4:17, 18. Terms used, "earthly" taber- 
nacle dissolved — not intended to endure. Ph. 
3: 21. (See qs. on Frailty of life, etc.) b. Can 
not stand the storm and stress of life — dissolves ; 
weather-beaten tent. And is this ALL? 

3. The house of God — what beyond? I have 
a right to know. 1 Co. 15:19; 1 Th. 4:13. 
"We know"— text. q. 1, 2, 5. I. a. (See qs. 
and I's. on Immortality.) 

A spiritual body. 1 Co. 15 : 44. Glorified and 
like Christ's. Ph. 3 : 21 ; 1 Co. 15 : 43. Eternal. 
2 Co. 4:18; He. 12:27, 28. ^.2. I. b, c. In 
the heavens. He. 11:14-16, 12:22; Kev. 21: 
10-27. q. 5. I. d. — A. H. D. 



144 



RESURRECTION 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

According to the Scriptures. — Lk. 24 : 45, 46. 
Alive for Evermore.— Eev. 1:18; Ro. 6:8-11. 
Alive in Christ.— 1 Co. 15 : 22 ; Ro. 6 : 8-11. 
A Mystery Revealed.— 1 Th. 4 : 13 ; 1 Co. 15 : 51. 
Celestial and Terrestrial Bodies. — 1 Co. 15 : 40. 
Concerning the Dead.— 1 Th. 4 : 13 ; 1 Co. 15 : 51. 
Corruption and Incorruption. — 1 Co. 15 : 42. 
Dead Shall Hear His Voice.— Jn. 3 : 25, 28, 29. 
Deathbed of Hope.— 1 Co. 15 : 18, 19 ; 1 Th. 4 : 

13; Job 19:10. 
Dishonor and Glory.— 1 Co. 15:43; Ph. 3:21. 
Easter Greeting.— Mk. 28: 9, 10; Lk. 24: 36; Jn. 

20:16, 19. 
Five Hundred Witnesses. — 1 Co. 15 : 6 ; Ac. 2 : 

32 ; 2 Ti. 2 : 2. 
Forever With the Lord.— 1 Th. 4: 13 ; Jn. 17 : 24. 
God Gives a Glorified Body.— 1 Co. 15 : 37, 38. 
He is Risen.— Mt. 28 : 6 ; Lk. 24 : 6, 34 ; Ro. 8 : 29. 
How Are the Dead Raised Up?— 1 Co. 15:35; 

Ph. 3:21. 
I Am the Resurrection. — Jn. 11 : 25, 5 : 21. 
Image of Earthly and Heavenly. — 1 Co. 15 : 49 ; 

Ps. 17 : 15. 
Immortality Put On.— 1 Co. 15:53; Ro. 2:7; 

2 Ti. 1 : 10. 
In My Flesh Shall I See God.— Job 19:26; Lk. 

24:39. 
Is the Resurrection Incredible ? — Ac. 26 : 18 ; 

ICo. 15:12. 
Jesus and the Resurrection. — Ac. 17:18, 4:2 
10 145 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Keystone of the Gospel.— 1 Co. 15 : 14-17. 
Life from the Dead.— 1 Co. 15: 36; Job 14: 7-9. 
My Redeemer Liveth.— Job 19:25; Mt. 28:6; 

Rev. 1 : 18. 
Not the Same Body.— 1 Co. 15:37, 50:54; Ph. 

3:20. 
Paul's Testimony.— Ac. 23:6; Ro. 1:4; 1 Co. 

15:8. 
Peter's Testimony.— Ac. 2:24, 32, 4:10; IP. 

1:3. 
Promise to the Fathers.— Ac. 26: 6; Mt. 22: 32; 

Mk. 12:27. 
Recompense in the Resurrection. — Lk. 14 : 14. 
Seeking the Living Among the Dead. — Lk. 24 : 5 ; 

Jn. 12 : 24. 
Some Doubted.— Mt. 28:17; Jn. 20:25; 1 Co. 

15:12. 
Stars Differ in Glory.— 1 Co. 15: 41; Dn. 12: 3; 

Mt. 13 : 43. 
The Change.— 1 Co. 15:51, 52; Ph. 3:21. 
The Earthy and the Heavenly.— 1 Co. 15 : 47, 48 ; 

Dn. 12 : 2. 
The Last Enemy Destroyed.— 1 Co. 15:26. 
The Last Trump.— 1 Th. 4:16; 1 Co. 15:52; 

Rev. 1 : 10. 
The Natural and the Spiritual. — 1 Co. 15 : 44 ; 

Ph. 3:21. 
Victory Over Death.— 1 Co. 15:54-57; He. 2: 

14; Rev. 20:14. 
With What Body Do They Comet— 1 Co. 15: 35. 
What Advantage?— 1 Co. 15: 32, 15: 19; Lk. 14: 

14; Jn. 5:29. 

146 



RESURRECTION 

A PRAYER 

Almighty God, who hast brought again from 
the dead our Lord Jesus, and hast made him the 
glorious Prince of our salvation and Author of 
everlasting life, we give Thee gracious thanks, 
that while we are called to-day to weep over our 
dead, we sorrow not even as others which have 
no hope, but we believe that as Jesus died and 
rose again even so them also which sleep in 
Jesus will God bring with Him. 

O Thou holy and blessed Savior, who by Thy 
victory over death and the grave hast brought 
life and immortality to light through Thy gospel, 
look with tender compassion upon these mourn- 
ing hearts before Thee. Sustain and strengthen 
them with the faith and hope of a future and 
a better life. May they hear Thee again saying, 
"I am the Resurrection and the Life: he that 
believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall 
he live." May they know Thee as the glorious 
Conqueror of death, and even through their 
tears see with the clear vision of a holy faith, 
beyond the clouds and darkness which surround 
the grave, the final triumph of those who, re- 
deemed both in body and soul, dwell with Thee 
in eternal bliss and everlasting glory. 

Grant unto us also, Lord, frail children of 
the dust so to rise with Thee in newness of life 
and righteousness, that we may so overcome the 
evils of this present world, that we may have 
a part in the resurrection of the just and reign 
with Thee in glory, world without end. Amen. 

147 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

QUOTATIONS 
1. 

Shall man alone, for whom all else revives, 
No resurrection know? Shall man alone, 
Imperial man! be sown in barren ground 
Less privileged than grain, on which he feeds? 

— Young. 
2. 

'T was sown in weakness here, 

'T will then be raised in power : 
That which was sown an earthly seed 
Shall rise a heavenly flower. 

— Horatius Bonar. 



3. 



For of the soul the body form doth take ; 
For soul is form and doth the body make. 

— Spenser. 

Forever near us, though unseen, 
The dear immortal spirits tread; 

For all the boundless universe 
Is life — there is no dead. 

The seed, the insentient seed, 
Buried beneath the earth, 
Starts from its dusty bed, 
Responsive to the voice of spring, 
And covers mead and mountain, 
Fields and forests, with its life. 
Myriads of creatures, too, that lay 
As dead as dust in every inch of ground, 
Touched by the vernal ray, 
148 



L 



RESURRECTION 

Spring from their little graves and sport 
On beauteous wings in fields of sunnied air. 
Shall this be so ? Shall plants and worms 
Come forth to life again ? And ! shall man 
Descend into the grave to rise no more? 
Shall he, the master of the world, 
Image and offspring of the fontal life, 
Through endless ages sleep in dust? 

— Thomas. 



6. 



0, Death was all a nameless dread till 
Easter came: 
Till He arose from that mysterious sleep ; 
Till He came back from out the silence deep 
And smiling said, "Fear not, it is 
Life 's deeper name : 
For this I came." 

And Life was but a broken Thought till 
Easter came: 
Till He awoke, the imaged Life of Life, 
And wrote Hope's iris on the skies of strife 
And hopeless storm of Death, and said, 
M 'T is but a name; 
Through it I came. 



? ? 



And Love was but a broken dream till 
Easter came: 
Till He arose, the imaged Love of Love, 
And said, i t The truer, deeper is beyond, above 
And Love a link of heaven and 
Earth became; 
And Death a name. 

149 — Cadmus Crabill. 



n 



7. 



8. 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 



I know that my Redeemer lives : 
"What joy the blest assurance gives ! 
He lives, he lives, who once was dead ; 
He lives, my everlasting Head ! 

He lives, and grants me daily breath ; 
He lives, and I shall conquer death ; 
He lives, may mansion to prepare; 
He lives, to bring me safely there. 

He lives, all glory to his name ; 
He lives, my Savior, still the same. 
"What joy the blest assurance gives ! 
I know that my Redeemer lives. 

— Samuel Medley. 

Then let the last loud trumpet sound, 

And bid our kindred rise : 
Awake, ye nations under ground, 

Ye saints, ascend the skies ! 

— Isaac Watts. 



150 



RESURRECTION 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

Nature has her many lessons for the fact of 
resurrection. The seed in the ground is changed 
to the beauteous flower or golden fruitage; the 
caterpillar to a butterfly, the egg to a bird, the 
charcoal to a diamond, and from common earth 
comes radium. — A. H. D. 

b. 

Like the watch and its case — the case repre- 
sents the body, the works the soul. The works 
can be taken from the old case, and put into a 
new one, and go on the same as before. It is 
really the same watch. 

c. 

The resurrection of Jesus is the assurance of 
our own resurrection, with spiritual bodies like 
his glorious body ; all sickness, weakness, pain, 
and infirmity are gone ; but new life, new powers, 
new joys, beyond our highest conception, and 
the assurance of the recognition of friends — all 
these go with the thought of the resurrection. 

d. 

A drop of water lay one day in the filth of 
the gutter, stained, soiled, and polluted. Look- 
ing up into the clear, blue sky, it began to wish 
for purity, and to be made crystalline. The 
sigh was heard by the great sun. With warm, 
gentle fingers the sun lifted it out of the filth 
of the foul gutter into the pure, sweet air. 

151 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Higher and higher it was carried until it found 
its home with its fellows in the bosom of a snow- 
white cloud. May it not be so in the resurrec- 
tion of the just? 

e. 

The Greek philosophers reasoned whether the 
soul's relation to the body was that of a harp 
and its harmony or of a rower to a boat. In 
the one case the music must cease when the 
harp was broken: in the other the rower might 
survive when the boat was destroyed. 

1 

Creation is more inexplicable than resurrec- 
tion. For it is not the same thing to rekindle 
an extinguished lamp, and to show fire that has 
never appeared. It is not the same thing to raise 
up a house that has fallen down, and to produce 
one that has never at all had an existence. — 
Chrysostom. 

g. 

I see before me an old cup, black and bat- 
tered and covered with filth. Who can tell what 
metal it is? It is brought in and given to the 
silversmith ; he no sooner receives it than he be- 
gins to break it in pieces, then he puts it into 
his fining pot and melts it. Now you begin 
to see it sparkle again; by and by he fashions 
it into a goodly chalice out of which a king may 
drink. Is it the same? The very same. — 
Spurgeon. 

152 



RESURRECTION 

h. 

"We unceasingly behold the small seeds of trees 
committed to the ground, wherefrom not long 
afterwards we behold large trees arise, and bring 
forth leaves and fruit. When we consider the 
littleness of the seed and what proceeded from 
it, we ask, Where was the wood? where was 
the bark? where the verdure of the foliage? 
where the abundance of the fruit? What won- 
der, then, if from the finest dust of our bodies 
resolved again into the elements He fashions 
again the human form? — Gregory. 

i. 

A vase closely sealed was found in a mummy- 
pit in Egypt, by the English traveler Wilkinson, 
who sent it to the British Museum. The li- 
brarian having unfortunately broken it, discov- 
ered in it a few peas, old, wrinkled, and as 
hard as a stone. The peas were planted carefully 
under a glass, on the fourth day of June, 1844, 
and at the end of thirty days these seeds were 
seen to spring into new life. They had been 
buried, probably, about three thousand years 
ago, apparently dead, yet still living in the dust 
of the tomb. 



153 



Judgment 



SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 

1. The Words of Jesus 

When the Son of man shall come in his glory, 
and all the holy angels with him, then shall he 
sit upon the throne of his glory: And before 
him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall 
separate them one from another, as a shepherd 
divideth his sheep from the goats : And he shall 
set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats 
on the left. 

Then shall the King say unto them on his 
right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, in- 
herit the kingdom prepared for you from the 
foundation of the world : For I was an hun- 
gered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty and 
ye gave me drink: I was a stranger and ye 
took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was 
sick and ye visited me: I was in prison and ye 
came unto me. 

Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, 
Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed 
thee? or thirsty and gave thee drink? When 
saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or 
naked and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee 
sick, or in prison, and came unto thee ? 

154 



JUDGMENT 

And the King shall answer and say unto them, 
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have 
done it unto one of the least of these my brethren 
ye have done it unto me. 

Then shall he say also unto them on his left 
hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlast- 
ing fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: 
For I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat : 
I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was 
a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and 
ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye 
visited me not. 

Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, 
when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a 
stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did 
not minister unto thee? 

Then shall he answ T er them, saying, Verily, I 
say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one 
of the least of these ye did it not to me. 

And these shall go away into everlasting pun- 
ishment : but the righteous into life eternal. Mt. 
25:31-46. 

2. Gathered for Judgment 

The Mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, 
and called the earth from the rising of the sun 
unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the 
perfection of beauty, God hath shined. 

Our God shall come, and shall not keep si- 
lence: a fire shall devour before him, and it 
shall be very tempestuous round about him. He 
shall call to the heavens from above, and to 

155 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

(the earth, that he may judge his people. Gather 
my saints together unto me: those that have 
made a covenant with me by sacrifice. And 
the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for 
God is Judge himself. Pis. 50 : 1-6. 

And I saw a great white throne, and him that 
sat on it, from whose face the earth and the 
heaven fled away : and there was found no place 
for them. And I saw the dead small and great, 
stand before God; and the books were opened: 
<and another book was opened, which is the book 
of life: and the dead were judged out of those 
things which were written in the books, accord- 
ing to their works. And the sea gave up the 
dead which were in it : and death and hell de- 
livered up the dead which were in them: and 
they were judged every man according to their 
works. And death and hell were cast into the 
lake of fire. This is the second death. And who- 
soever was not found written in the book of life 
was cast into the lake of fire. 

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: 
for the first heaven and the first earth were 
passed away ; and there was no more sea. And 
I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, com- 
ing down from God out of heaven, prepared 
as a bride adorned for her husband. And I 
heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Be- 
hold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and 
he will dwell with them, and they shall be his 
people, and God himself shall be with them .and 
be their God. Rev. 20 : 11-15, 21 : 1-3. 

156 



JUDGMENT 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

Death and Judgment— He. 9 : 27. 

Sept. Sel. 1 or 2. 

It is appointed unto m,en once to die, hut 
after this the judgment. 

Two solemn events in the history of all — both 
are inevitable. Ec. 3:20; 2 Co. 5:10. Death 
God's call to judgment. Kev. 20: 12. I. e. 

1. The great assize. Ac. 17 : 31. AH called. 
Eo. 2 : 3. None excused. Ro. 14 : 12. No es- 
cape. Ro. 2:3; Am. 9:1-1; Ps. 139:7-12. 
High and low. Lk. 1 : 52. Oppressed and op- 
pressor. Ps. 72 : 4. Saint and sinner. Ec. 3 : 
17 ; Ro. 2 : 2-16. q. 6. I. d. 

2. The Judge— the Lord Jesus. Mt. 25:31. 
His majesty and glory. Dn. 7:9, 10 ; Rev. 6 : 
15, 16. Mercy has made her plea — Justice now 
takes the throne. Ps. 89: 14; Pr. 1:24-31; Ps. 
97 : 2. q. 2. I. a. 

3. Books opened. Rev. 20 : 12. Book of law. 
Dt. 30:10; Gal. 3:10. Conscience. Ro. 1:19, 
28-32. q. 1, 3, 5. Memory. Mai. 3 : 16. I. e. 
Works. Ec. 12 : 14 ; Ezek. 7 : 3 ; 1 Co. 4 : 5 ; Rev. 
14:13. Life. Rev. 20:15; Lk. 10:20; Dn. 
12:1. 

4. The final sentence. Mt. 25 : 21. I. b. Mt. 
25 : 34, 41. q. 6. Mt. 25 : 46 ; Ro. 2 : 5-9 ; Rev. 
14:13. q. 7. 

—A. H. D. 



157 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

According to the Gospel. — Ro. 2 : 16 ; 2 Co. 5 : 10. 
According to the Truth.— Ro. 2 : 2 ; Is. 11 : 3, 4. 
According to Works. — Ec. 12 : 14 ; Ezek. 7:3; 

ICo. 4:5; Rev. 14:13. 
All People.— Mt. 25:32; IS. 2:10; Rev. 6: 

15-17, 20:12, 13. 
As a Thief in the Night.— 2 P. 3 : 10 ; 1 Th. 5 : 

2-4; Rev. 3:3. 
Books Opened.— Rev. 20:12; Dn. 7:10, 12:1. 
Book of Conscience.— Ro. 1 : 19, 28-32, 2 : 14, 15 ; 

Un. 3:20. 
Book of the Law.— Dt. 30:10; Jos. 1:18; Gal. 

3:10. 
Book of Life.— Rev. 20:15; Lk. 10:20; Dn. 

12 : 1 ; Ph. 4 : 3. 
Book of Remembrance.— Mai. 3 : 16-18 ; Ps. 56 : 8 ; 

Is. 65 : 6. 
Day Appointed.— Ac. 17:31; Ro. 2:16. 
Day of Wrath.— Rev. 6 : 17 ; Mai. 4 : 1 ; Jl. 2 : 31. 
Descriptions of Judgment. — Ps. 50 ; Dn. 7 : 9-14 ; 

Mt. 25; Rev. 20. 
Death and Judgment.— He. 9:27; 2 Co. 5:10. 
Everlasting Decrees.— Mt. 25 : 46 ; Dn. 12 : 2 ; Ro. 

2 : 5-9. 
Heart Judgment.— 1 Jn. 3:20, 21; Ec. 3:17; 

Jer. 11:20; He. 8:10. 
Inasmuch.— Mt. 25:40-45, 10:42; He. 6:10. 
Jesus the Judge.— Mt. 25 : 31 ; Ac. 17 : 31 ; 2 Co. 

5:10; Ps. 50:1. 
Judge of Nations.— Gn. 15: 4; Ps. 110: 6. 

158 



JUDGMENT 

Judge of Quick and Dead.— 2 Ti. 4 : 1 ; 1 P. 4 : 5. 

Justice and Judgment. — Ps. 89 : 14, 97 : 2 ; Jer. 

23:5; Pr. 1:24-31. 

Mercy and Judgment.— Ps. 101 : 1 ; Mt. 5 : 7. 
No Escape.— Ko. 2:3; Am. 9:1-4; Ps. 139 : 7-12. 

Punishment of the Wicked.— 2 Th. 1:7-9; Mt. 

25:46; He. 10:27-31. 
Righteous Judgment.— Ps. 9:8; Jer. 11 : 20. 
Righteous Rewarded.— Mt. 25 : 34 ; Ro. 2 : 10. 
Saints Gathered.— Ps. 50:5, 6; Dt. 33:3; Mai. 

3 : 16-18. 

Secrets Revealed.— Ec. 12:14; Ps. 90:8; Ro. 
2:16; ICo. 4:5. 

The Angels.— Mt. 13:39, 49, 25:31; Mk. 8:38. 
The Heavens and the Earth.— 2 P. 3:10; Ps. 
102:26; Mt. 24:35. 

The Judge Cometh.— 1 Ch. 16:33; Ps. 98:9. 
The Judgment Throne.— Ps. 9:7; 2 Co. 5:10; 

Rev. 20:11. 
The Majesty of the Judge.— Dn. 7:9, 10; Rev. 

6:35, 16. 
The Righteous Judge.— Gn. 18:25; Ps. 98:9; 

2Ti. 4:8. 

The Righteous and Wicked.— Ec. 3:17; Mt. 
25:46; Ro. 2:2-16. 

The Ungodly.— Ps. 1 : 5 ; Mt. 25 : 46 ; Ro. 2 : 3-5. 

The Separation.— Mt. 25 : 36, 13 : 49 ; Ps. 1 : 5. 

Treasuring Up Wrath.— Ro. 2: 5; Dt. 32: 33-36. 

We Know Not the Day.— Mt. 24 : 36 ; Ml?. 13 : 32. 

159 



PASTOE'S IDEAL FUNEEAL BOOK 

A PRAYER 

God, Father Almighty ! Holy and Merci- 
ful Savior! Thou most worthy Judge Eternal: 
to whom shall we go but unto Thee, for Thou 
hast the words of eternal life? 

Lord God, our Heavenly Father, who alone 
art the Author and Disposer of our life; from 
whom our spirits have come, and to whom they 
shall return: we acknowledge Thy sovereign 
power and right both to give and to take away 
as seemeth good in Thy sight; and we most 
humbly beseech Thee, that unto all Thy right- 
eous judgments we may yield ourselves with 
due resignation and patience, being assured that 
though we understand not now 'the mystery of 
Thy ways, yet always in faithfulness, Lord, 
dost Thou afflict us. 

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, Maker of .all things, Judge of all men: 
We humbly beseech Thee to raise us from the 
death of sin unto the life of righteousness ; that 
when we shall depart this life, we may rest in 
Him ; and that in the day of Judgment we may 
be found acceptable in Thy sight and receive 
that blessing which Thy well beloved Son shall 
then pronounce to all that love <and serve Thee, 
saying, Come, ye blessed children of My Father, 
receive the kingdom prepared for you from the 
beginning of the world : Grant this, we beseech 
Thee, merciful Father, through Jesus Christ 
our Mediator and Redeemer. Amen. — A. H. D. 

160 



JUDGMENT 

1 QUOTATIONS 

Cruel and cold is the judgment of man, 

Cruel as winter, and cold as the snow; 

But by and by will the deed and the plan 

Be judged by the motive that lieth below. 

— Lewis J. Bates. 

2. 

Heaven is above all yet : there sits a Judge 

That no king can corrupt. 

— Shakespeare. 

3. 

There written, all 

Black as the damning drops that fall 

From the denouncing angel's pen, 

Ere mercy weeps them out again. 

. — Moore. 

4. 

We shall be judged not by what we might have 

been, but what we have been. — Seneca. 



Aye, Justice, who evades her ? 

Her scales reach every heart; 
The action and the motive, 

She weigheth each apart ; 
And none who swerve from right or truth 

Can 'scape her penalty ! 

— Sarah J. Hale. 



6. 



God's ways seem dark, but, soon or late, 
They touch the shining hills of day. 
The evil can not brook delay, 

The good can well afford to wait. 

u 161 — Whittier. 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

It is Christ who will come in the clouds of 
heaven: we must all appear before His judg- 
ment-seat. This is to the Christian a most de- 
lightful consideration — my Redeemer is my 
Judge. He who died for me passes the final 
sentence. Look how great is His majesty and 
His glory! So great is my atonement and pro- 
pitiation. — Hervey. 

b. 

There is a machine in the Bank of England 
which receives sovereigns, as a mill receives 
grain, for the purpose of determining wholesale 
whether they are of full weight. As they pass 
through, the machinery, by unerring laws, 
throws all that are light to one side, and all that 
are of full weight to another. That process is 
a solemn parable of the unerring justice of the 
Day of Judgment. 

c. 

Jerome used to say that it seemed to him as 
if the trumpet of the last day was always sound- 
ing in his ear, saying, "Arise, ye dead, and come 
to Judgment." Many people think little of this 
most important of all days in human history. 

d. 

Traverse the earth; enter the gorgeous cities 
of idolatry, or accept the hospitality of its wan- 
dering tribes; go where you will, and you will 

168 



JUDGMENT 

find in man "a fearful looking for of judg- 
ment. ' ' 

e. 

May it not be that God has so constituted the 
human mind that it is its own recorder — that 
"the opening of the books" may be the quick- 
ening of the powers of recollection — so that 
every act of life is again brought to light. It 
is still a question if we ever entirely forget 
anything — A. H. D. 

f. 

We recall Leigh Hunt's poem about Ben 
Adhem, to whom the angel appeared with a 
book in which were written ' i the names of those 
who loved the Lord." He requested that his 
own name might be written as "one who loved 
his fellow-men." The angel appeared again — 

"And showed the names whom love of God had 

blessed, 
And lo! Ben Adhem 's name led all the rest." 



iea 



Heaven 

SCRIPTURE SELECTIONS 
1. The Better Country 

But now they desire a better country, that is 
an heavenly; wherefore God is not ashamed to 
be called their God: for he hath prepared for 
them a city. He. 11 : 16. 

Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy 
presence is fullness of joy: at thy right hand 
there are pleasures for evermore. Ps. 16 : 11. 

The redeemed of the Lord shall walk there: 
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and 
come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy 
upon their heads : they shall obtain joy and glad- 
ness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 
Is. 35 : 9, 10. 

Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty: 
they shall behold the land that is afar off. Is. 
33 : 17. 

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor 
ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart 
of man, the things which God hath prepared for 
them that love him. 1 Co. 2 : 9. 

"What are these which are arrayed in white 
robes ? and whence came they ? And I said unto 
him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said unto me, 

164 



HEAVEN 

These are they which came out of great tribu- 
lation, and have washed their robes, and made 
them white in the blood of the Lamb. There- 
fore are they before the throne of God, and 
serve him day and night in his temple : and he 
that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among 
them. 

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any 
more: neither shall the sun light on them, nor 
any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst 
of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead 
them unto living fountains of waters: and God 
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. Rev. 
7 : 13-17. 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant 
mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope 
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the 
dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and un- 
defiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in 
heaven for you. IP. 1:3, 4. 

2. The Holy City 

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: 
for the first heaven and the first earth were 
passed away; and there was no more sea. And 
I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, com- 
ing down from God out of heaven, prepared as 
a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard 
a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the 
tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell 
with them, and they shall be his people, and God 

165 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

himself shall be with them, and be their God. 
And God shall wipe away all tears from their 
eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any 
more pain: for the former things are passed 
away. . . . 

And he carried me away in the spirit to a 
great and high mountain, and showed me that 
great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out 
of heaven from God, having the glory of God: 
and her light was like unto a stone most precious, 
even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal: and 
had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, 
and at the gates twelve angels, and names 
written thereon, which are the names of the 
twelve tribes of the children of Israel. And the 
wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in 
them the names of the twelve apostles of the 
Lamb. And the building of the wall was of 
jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto 
clear glass. . . . 

And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord 
God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of 
it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither 
of the moon, to shine in it : for the glory of God 
did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. 
And the nations of them which are saved shall 
walk in the light of it: and the kings of the 
earth do bring their glory and honor into it. 
And the gates of it shall not be shut by day: 
for there shall be no night there. Rev. 21 : 1-4, 
10-12, 14, 18, 22-25. See also Rev. 22 : 1-5. 

166 



HEAVEN 

TOPICS, TEXTS, OUTLINES, AND NOTES 

Suffering Now — Glory Afterward — Ro. 8 : 18. 

Sept. Sel. 1. 

From I reckon that the sufferings of this pres- 
ent time are not worthy to he compared with 
the glory which shall be revealed in us. 

1. Sufferings now. Problems of life worth 
considering. Life a hard proposition. Man 
born to sorrow. Is it all worth the struggle? 
Job 5:7; Ec. 2 : 23. Now — toils, trials, tears, 
disappointments, discouragements, sometimes de- 
spair, sickness, pain, suffering, loneliness, etc. 
Is this all? q. 3. 

2. The glory afterward shall be revealed in 
us. What shall it be? q. 13. I. e. We do not 
know ALL, but we do know SOME of that glory, 
q. 1. 1 Co. 2 : 9. Freedom from earthly toils, 
q. 18. I. h. Sorrow. Is. 35 : 10. Pain and 
death, q. 4. I. a. Is. 25 : 8 ; Rev. 21 : 4. Meet- 
ing loved ones. 1 Co. 13 : 12 ; 2 S. 12 : 23. q. 17, 
20. I. d. Pleasures for evermore. Ps. 16 : 11 ; 
Is. 35:10. q. 4, 5, 6. 

3. Revealed "IN US." Heaven a condition 
as well as a place. Lk. 17 : 21 ; Jn. 14 : 3. q. 10, 
21. 

We shall be like him. We shall share his 
glory. Col. 3:4; Jn. 17 : 24. And see him as 
he is. q. 7. I. c. 

4. Surely Paul's conclusion is ours. Text. 

—A. H. D. 

167 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Their Desired Haven — Ps. 107 : 30. 

Sept. Sel. 1 or 2. 

Then are they glad because they he quiet; so 
he bringeth them unto their desired haven. 

1. Life a voyage. Every ship a romantic ob- 
ject — we should wish all "Bon voyage" and safe 
harbor. Life made up of cloud and sunshine, 
calm and storm, fair wind and furious tempests ; 
storm at sea — dangerous, but drives us nearer 
home. Guided by the Heavenly Pilot, we are 
safe and secure. He rules both ship and sea. 
Mk. 4 : 37-41 ; Lk. 8 : 22-25 ; Ps. 89 : 9 ; Nah. 1 : 3. 
q. 7, 9. 

2. "Why people desire the haven. Jer. 49 : 23. 
Rest and quiet from storms of life; "glad;" no 
music sweeter than the rattle of the anchor-chain 
in the desired haven; sickness, suffering, weari- 
ness, confinement in cramped quarters all past; 
care, worry, tears, etc. Rest. Mt. 8 : 26 ; He. 
4:9. q. 3. I. a, c. Because of the meeting of 
friends gone before. 2 S. 12 : 23. q. 20. I. d, f . 
Good of all ages. He. 12 : 23. Because of the 
enjoyments. Is. 35 : 10 ; Ps. 16 : 
broader horizons, sweeter joys. 
73:25; Rev. 22:4. q. 4, 5, 6 ; 
Because of rewards. Job 3:17: 
14:13; Dn. 12:3. 

—A. H. D. 



168 



LI. 


Wider life, 


Is. 


33 : 17 ; Ps. 


21. 


I. e, i, j. 


Ps. 


55 : 6 ; Eev. 



!w 



HEAVEN 

Eest from Labors — Rev. 14:13. Sept. Sel. 1. 

Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from 
their labors; and their works do follow them. 

1. God's promises more precious when the 
need comes — earthly consolations can not avail. 
Voice from heaven — "Blessed," etc., bright gem 
of promise. 

2. But our finite minds ask, Why? The dark- 
ness, gloom, mystery, loneliness, etc., make us 
ask, WHY? The voice from heaven answers, 
q. 3. 

3. That they may rest — permanent rest. Job 
3 : 17. Human life is full of labor, restless, and 
toil ; no permanent rest here — Ps. 90 : 10 — from 
labor, toil, weariness, weakness, sickness, pain, 
sorrow. The cry is, "I am so tired." Ps. 55 : 6. 
q. 2. I. a. 

4. Rest not IN but FROM labors. Mt. 11: 
28, 29. We rest here, but in the midst of labor, 
only to begin again. To-day's rest and joy 
haunted by to-morrow's toil and pain. Eternal 
rest at Home. I. h. He. 4:7-11. q. 18, 21. 

5. Works follow them. Ja. 2 : 14-20. Good 
works— we forget them. Mt. 25:37-39. God 
never forgets them. He. 6 : 10. Every good act 
of life has its reward. Mt. 10:42, 25:34-40. 
Why should we weep for our dead ? With them 
gloom is past and glory begun. 

— H. W. Milner. 

169 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

The City Foursquare — Rev. 21 : 16. 

Sept. Sel. 2. 
And the city lieth foursquare. 

1. Heaven — a place and a state. Jn. 14 : 3 ; 
Lk. 18 : 21. A kingdom. Mt. 24 : 34. A country. 
He. 11:16. A mount. He. 12:22. May be 
planet, star, or constellation, but somewhere — 
q. 9 ; I. f . Lk. 18 : 21. Every man carries his 
own heaven. 

2. Beauty and richness of heaven indescrib- 
able. 1 Co. 2:9. q. 13. I. e. See Rev. 21, 22: 
1-5. Exceeds all beauty on earth. IP. 1:4. 
Riches of mind and heart of all ages and people ; 
their greatness and goodness. 

3. The employments of heaven. He. 1 : 14. 
Activity necessary to happiness of mind, body, 
soul; hence employment in heaven. Duty will 
be delight — service gladness. 

4. Enjoyments of heaven. Ps. 16 : 11 ; Is. 35 : 
10 ; Ps. 36 : 8. a. Negative — freedom from sick- 
ness, pain, sorrow, tears, and death, q. 3. I. a. 
Rev. 21 : 4. All our powers at their best — a pain- 
less, deathless, spiritual body fully suited to 
capacities of soul. q. 18. b. Positive — Work, 
worship, esthetic delights, music — q. 11 — and 
songs by celestial choirs, angels, and the re- 
deemed of earth. Rev. 15 : 3, 4. q. 15, 16. 
Meeting loved ones gone. q. 20. I. c. Complete 
satisfaction. Ps. 17 : 15. Like Him. q. 21. 
1 Jn. 3 : 2. — Alfred Kummer, adapted from 

City Four-Sqiiare," by permission. 



170 



a 



HEAVEN 

SUGGESTIVE THEMES AND TEXTS 

A Better Country.— He. 11 : 16 ; Ph. 3 : 20. 
A City Without a Temple.— Eev. 21:22; Ps. 

11:4; Hab. 2:20. 
A Glad Home Coming.— Is. 35: 10, 51: 11. 
Coming to Zion. — Is. 51 : 11 ; Jer. 50 : 5. 
Eating and Drinking.— Lk. 14:15; Mt. 26:29. 
Everlasting Joy.— Is. 35: 10, 49: 10; Ps. 16 : 11. 
Eye Hath Not Seen.— 1 Co. 2: 9; Is. 64: 4. 
Employments in Heaven. — Eev. 5:9; Mt. 22 : 

30; He. 1:14. 
Face to Face.— 1 Co. 13:12; Is. 33:17; Rev. 

22:4; Un. 3:2. 
Fullness of Joy.— Ps. 16:11; Is. 35:10; Ac. 

2:28; Ps. 36:8. 
Gates Never Shut.— Rev. 21:25; Is. 60:11; Ps. 

118 : 19, 20. 
Heaven God's Throne.— Is. 66: 1; Mt. 5: 34. 
Heavenly Army. — Dn. 4 : 35 ; Rev. 19 : 14 ; Mt. 

26:53; 2K. 6:17. 
Heavenly Citizenship.— Ph. 3:20 (R. V.); He. 

12:23, 11:16. 
Incorruptible Inheritance. — 1 P. 1:4; Mt. 25 : 

34; Eph. 1:18. 
Jerusalem Above.— Gal. 4:26; He. 12:22; Rev. 

3 : 12, 21 : 2. 
Kingdom of Heaven.— Mt. 8:11, 7:21, 5:19, 

18 : 3, 4. 
Many Mansions.— Jn. 14 : 2 ; Rev. 14 : 1-3, 5 : 11 ; 

Ps. 68 : 17. 
Mount Zion.— He. 12:22; Is. 35:10, 33:20. 

171 



PASTOE'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

New Heaven and New Earth.— Rev. 21:1; Is. 

65:17; 2 P. 3:13. 
/No More Tears.— Is. 25:8, 35:10, 65:19; Rev. 

7:17, 21:4. 
/ No Sickness Nor Pain.— Is. 33:24; Rev. 21:4; 

■Mt. 8:16. 
No More Death.— Rev. 21:4, 20:14; He. 2:14. 
Out of Great Tribulation.— Rev. 7:14; Ro. 8: 

17; Ac. 14:22. 
Pleasures for Evermore.— Ps. 16: 11; Is. 35: 10. 
Prepared Place.— Jn. 14:3; Mt. 25:34; 1 Co. 

2:9; He. 11:16. 
Path of Life.— Ps. 16:11, 23:3; Is. 35:9, 10. 
Rest— Job 3:17; Ps. 55:6, 116:7; He. 4:9; 

Rev. 14:13. 
/Shall We Enow Each Other ?— 1 Co. 13 : 12 ; Mk. 

9:4, 5. 
Songs of Heaven.— Rev. 15 : 3, 5:9; Ps. 137 : 3 ; 

Is. 35:10. 
The City Foursquare.— Rev. 21:16; Ps. 122:3. 
The City of Gold.— Rev. 21:18; He< 12:22. 
The Heavenly Host.— Lk. 2: 13 ; Dn. 7 : 10. 
The King in His Beauty.— Is. 33 : 17 ; Ps. 73 : 

25; Rev. 22:4. 
The Living Hope.— 1 P. 1:3 (R. V.) He. 6:19. 
The Marriage Supper.— Rev. 19:9; Lk. 14:17. 
Paradise of God.— Rev. 2:17; Lk. 23:43. 
We Shall Be Like Him.— 1 Jn. 3:2; Ps. 17 : 15 ; 

2 Co. 3:18. 
White Robed Multitude.— Rev. 7 : 13-15, 19 : 14. 
With Him in Glory.— Col. 3:4; Jn. 17:24. 
; Whole Family in Heaven.— Eph. 3: 15; Gn. 12: 

3; Is. 8: 18. 



HEAVEN 

A PEAYER 

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, we thank 
Thee for the voices that come to us from other 
worlds with their sweet music and saving gos- 
pels. 

If amid the conflicts and strifes, the tumults 
and noises of earth we have failed to hear the 
music of heaven, Forgive us, Lord. If pressed 
down with the burdens and perplexed by the 
cares of this life, we have neglected to look up- 
ward to that higher and holier life with Thee, 
Forgive us, Lord. 

We turn our listening ears and wistful eyes 
and sorrowing hearts, Lord, to Thee, and 
toward that happier and better world. "We 
would hear the music of Thy voice, we would 
see the glory of Thy face, we would comfort 
our hearts with the hopes of heaven. 

May we not think of our loved ones as dead, 
but only as having broken from the tenement 
of clay and gone to be with Thee in the Father 's 
house of many mansions, where in Thy loving 
providence we may meet them again. 

Lord, may the hope of that future home 
and happiness so strengthen our faith and pur- 
pose and love that we may live to please Thee 
here and at last hear Thee say, "Well done, good 
and faithful servants, enter thou into the joy 
of thy Lord." And all we ask is for Jesus' sake. 
Amen. — A. H. D. 

173 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

QUOTATIONS 
L 

What if earth 
Be but the shadow of heaven, and things therein 
Each to the other like, more than below is 
thought. 

— Milton. 



2. 



Hope springs eternal in the human breast, 
Man never is, but always to be blest, 
The soul, uneasy, and confined from home, 
Rests and expatiates in a life to come. 

— Pope. 

Tell me, my secret soul, 

0, tell me, Hope and Faith, 
Is there no resting-place 

From sorrow, sin, and death ? 
Is there no happy spot 

Where mortals may be blessed ; 
Where grief may find a balm, 

And weariness a rest? 
Faith, Hope, and Love, 

Best boons to mortals given, 
Waved their bright wings, and whispered, 

"Yes, — in heaven !" 

— Charles Mackay. 

There is a land of pure delight, 
Where saints immortal reign; 

Infinite day excludes the night, 
And pleasures banish pain. 

174 — Isaac Watts. 



HEAVEN 

5. 

Go, wing thy flight from star to star, 
Prom world to luminous world — as far 

As the universe spreads its flaming wall: 
Take all the pleasures of all the spheres 
And multiply each through endless years — 

One minute in heaven is worth them all! 

— Thomas Moore. 

6. 

The treasury of everlasting joy! 

— Shakespeare. 

7. 

Sunset and evening star, 

And one clear call for me! 
And may there be no moaning of the bar 

When I put out to sea ; 
But such a tide as moving seems asleep, 

Too full for sound and foam, 
When that which drew from out the boundless 
deep 

Turns again home. 

Twilight and evening bell, 

And after that the dark! 
And may there be no sadness of farewell, 

When I embark; 
For tho' from out our bourne of Time and Place 

The flood may bear me far, 
I hope to see my Pilot face to face 

When I have crost the bar. 

— Tennyson. 

175 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

8. 

And so beside the silent sea 

I wait the muffled oar ; 
No harm from him can come to me 

On ocean or on shore. 

I know not where His islands lift 
Their fronded palms in air; 

I only know I can not drift 
Beyond His love and care. 

— Whittier. 

H^ven is not reached at a single bound; 
But we build the ladder by which we rise 
From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies, 
And mount to its summit round by round. 

—J. G. Holland. 
10. 

Heaven open'd wide 
Her ever-during gates, harmonious sound 
On golden hinges moving. 

— Milton. 



11. 
12. 



Heaven's eternal year is thine. 

— Drvden. 



Eye hath not seen it, my gentle boy ! 
Ear hath not heard its deep songs of joy ; 
Dreams can not picture a world so fair — 
Sorrow and death may not enter there ; 
Time doth not breathe on its fadeless bloom, 
For beyond the clouds and beyond the tomb, 
It is there, it is there, my child! 

— Mrs. Hemans. 
176 



13. 



14. 



HEAVEN 



For all we know 
Of what the blessed do above 
Is, that they sing and that they love. 

—Waller. 

0, may I join the choir invisible 

Of those immortal dead who live again. 



So shall I join the choir invisible 
Whose music is the gladness of the world. 

— George Eliot. 
15. 
There, from the music round me stealing, 

I fain would learn the new and holy song, 
And find at last, beneath thy trees of healing, 
The life for which I long. 

— Whittier. 



16. 



17. 



There is a world above 

Where parting is unknown; 

A whole eternity of love 

Form'd for the good alone: 

And faith beholds the dying here 

Translated to that happier sphere. 

— Montgomery. 

A home in heaven ! what a joyful thought, 
As the poor man toils in his weary lot ! 
His heart opprest, and with anguish driven, 
From his home below to his home in heaven. 

— Wm. Hunter. 
12 177 



/ 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

18. 

Thus departed Hiawatha, 
Hiawatha the Beloved, 
In the glory of the sunset 
In the purple mists of evening, 
To the regions of the home-wind, 
Of the Northwest wind Keewaydin, 
To the Islands of the Blessed, 
To the Kingdom of Ponemah, 
To the land of the Hereafter, 

— Longfellow. 



19, 



And now from out the glory 

In living clouds of light, 
The old, familiar faces come 

Beaming on his sight: 
The early lost, the early loved, 

The friends of long ago — 
Companions of his pilgrimage 

And conflicts here below. 

They parted here in weakness, 

In suffering, and in gloom; 
They meet amid the freshness 

Of heaven 's immortal boon, 
Henceforth in ever-during bliss 

To wander hand in hand 
Beside the living waters 

Of that still and sinless land. 

178 



^ 



20. 



HEAVEN 

O, who can tell the rapture 
Of those to whom 't is given 

Thus to renew the bonds of earth 
Amid the bliss of heaven? 

— Anon. 

"We speak of the realms of the blest, 
That country so bright and so fair ; 

And oft are its glories confessed — 
But what must it be to be there! 

Do thou, Lord, 'midst pleasure and woe, 
For heaven our spirits prepare; 

Then soon shall we joyfully know, 
And feel what it is to be there. 

—Elizabeth Mills. 

21. 

If death be recompense for sorrows deep; 
If death be longing for the ones who weep ; 
If death be endless, sweet, eternal sleep ; 
If death be victory over sin 's vast sweep — 
Speak, ye who know. 

In life and death all travel toward God's throne, 
His hands reach out to draw us gently home ; 
He, at our journey's end, gives peaceful rest; 
His heart the only homeland of the blest — 
This much we know. 

— Rosemary Rogers. 



179 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
a. 

' ' NEITHER SHALL THERE BE ANT 
MORE PAIN." Write it in letters of gold. 
Write it upon the face of the sun, and spell it 
with stars across the darkest night of thy sor- 
rows, so that all may read it. Write it in un- 
fading letters of faith upon thy memory, 
suffering child of God, thou shut-in one, lan- 
guishing all thy life long on beds of pain, with 
thorns in thy flesh that even faith and prayer 
can not remove: "Neither shall there be any 
more pain : for former things are passed away. ' ' 
— Alfred Kummer. 



In the twilight of(^/ summer evening a pastor 
saw a boy with hands extended upward, holding 
a line. "What are you doing, my lad?" in- 
quired the minister. "Plying my kite, sir," 
was the reply. "I see no kite." "I know it, 
sir; nor can I see it, but I know it ? s there — 
I feel it pull." If our affections are set upon 
things above, we shall have a sense of heaven 
which can not be mistaken. 

c. 

A converted heathen, coming to the gates of 
death, said, "After this, heaven. 



>? 



180 



HEAVEN 

d. 

A certain divine once said: "When I was a 
boy I thought of heaven as a great, shining city, 
with vast walls and domes and spires, inhabited 
only by white, tenuous angels who were strangers 
to me. By and by my little brother died; then 
other friends and relatives followed, until now 
so many have gone there that I sometimes think 
I know more there than here and that it will 
seem more like home." 

e. 

John Bunyan was asked a question about 
heaven that he could not answer; he thereupon 
advised the inquirer to live a holy life and go 
and see. 

f. 

But how near must we say heaven is ? — for it 
is just one sigh and we are there. Why, 
brethren, our departed friends are only in the 
upper room of the same house. Eph. 3:15. — 
Spurgeon. 

g. 

In a field hospital during the war lay a young 
man mortally wounded. All was silent, when the 
young man suddenly called, "Here!" A sur- 
geon hastened to his side and asked what he 
wished. " Nothing,' ' said he; "they were call- 
ing the roll in heaven, and I was answering to 
my name." He turned his head and was gone — 
gone to join the white-robed army of heaven. 

181 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

h. 

An aged Christian when asked how he did, 
replied, "I am going home as fast as I can, as 
every honest man ought to do when his day's 
work is done; and I bless God that I have a 
good home to go to." 

i. 

I could hardly wish to enter heaven did I 
believe its inhabitants were to idly sit by purl- 
ing streams, fanned by balmy airs. Heaven, to 
be a place of happiness, must be a place of ac- 
tivity. Has the far-reaching mind of Newton 
ceased its profound investigations? Has David 
hung up his harp, as useless as the dusty arms 
in Westminster Abbey ? Has Paul, glowing with 
godlike enthusiasm, ceased itinerating the uni- 
verse of God? Are Peter and Cyprian and 
Edwards and Payson and Everets idling away 
eternity in mere psalm-singing? Heaven is a 
place of ceaseless activity, the abode of never- 
tiring thought. — Beecher. 

J- 

You can not see the city of the new Jerusalem 
in a day. It will take all eternity to see heaven, 
to count its towers, to examine its trophies, to 
gaze upon the thrones, to see the hierarchies. 
Ages on ages roll, and yet heaven is new. The 
streets new, the Temple new, the joy new, the 
song new. We will never exhaust heaven, 
Never, Never. — Talmage. 

182 



HEAVEN 

k. 

A city without griefs or graves, without sins 
or sorrows, without births or burials, without 
marriages or mournings; a city which glories 
in having Jesus for its King, angels for its 
guards, saints for citizens; whose walls are sal- 
vation, and whose gates are praise. — Dr. Guthrie. 

1. 

A little city boy whose mother had died, had 
told him that she was going to heaven. She 
was buried in a beautiful cemetery, amid the 
trees and flowers. As he stood by her grave, 
he looked about him and then into the grave, and 
asked, "Is this heaven?" 

m. 

Upon the tombstone of a girl blind from her 
birth is this inscription, "There is no night 
there." 

n. 

Aristotle tells of a place in Sicily so fragrant 
with flowers that no hound can hunt there. The 
scent is so confused by the sweet odors of the 
many blossoms that it can not be followed. So 
may the fragrance of heaven detract our atten- 
tion from earthly pursuits. 



When God says "Well done," there are no 
temptations, trials, or dangers after that. That 
"Well done" means heaven, glory, immortality, 
eternal life! 

183 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

P. 

Eternity makes heaven to be heaven ; ? t is the 
diamond in the ring: blessed day, that shall 
have no night ! The sunlight of Glory shall rise 
upon the soul and never set! blessed Spring 
that shall have no Autumn or fall of the leaf. 
— "Watson. 

q. 

As Columbus found indications of the New 
World floating on the Atlantic, so the Christian 
finds evidences of heaven on the turbulent waters 
of life's sea. 

r. 

Julius Caesar was marching towards Rome 
with his army, and hearing that the Senate and 
people had fled from it, said, "They that will 
not fight for this city, what city will they fight 
for ? ' ' But what was Rome compared to heaven ? 
Surely heaven is worth fighting for. 



184 



Funeral Hymns 



Abide with me. — Lyte. 

Asleep in Jesus. — Mrs. Mackay. 

Beautiful isle of somewhere. — Jessie B. Pounds. 

Beautiful valley of Eden. — Cushing. 

Beyond the smiling and the weeping. — Bonar. 

Calm in the bosom of thy God. — Mrs. Hemans. 

Come, ye disconsolate. — Moore. 

Crossing the bar. — Tennyson. 

Down life's dark vale we wander. — Bliss. 

Face to face. — T. A. Breck. 

Fade, fade each earthly joy. — Mrs. Bonar. 

Friend after friend departs. — Jas. Montgomery. 

Forever with the Lord. — Montgomery. 

He leadeth me ; blessed thought ! — Gilmore. 

How blest the righteous when he dies! — -Mrs. 

Barbauld. 
I am thinking to-day. — E. E. Hewitt. 
It is not death to die. — Abraham Malan. 
I would not live alway. — W. A. Muhlenberg. 
I know that my Redeemer lives. — C. Wesley. 
I need Thee every hour. — Mrs. Hawks. 
It is not death to die. — A. H. C. Malan. 
I Ve found a joy in sorrow.- — Jane Crewdson. 
Jerusalem the golden. — Bernard of Cluny. 
Jesus, Lover of my soul. — C. Wesley. 
Jesus, Savior, pilot me. — E. Hopper. 

185 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Jesus wept ; those tears are over. — John R. Mae- 
duff. 

Jesus, while our hearts are bleeding. — T. Hast- 
ings. 

Lead, Kindly Light. — J. H. Newman. 

My faith looks up to Thee. — Palmer. 

My heavenly home is bright and fair. — Hunter. 

My Jesus, as Thou wilt. — Jane Borthwick. 

Nearer, my God, to Thee. — Sarah Adams. 

0, think of the home over there ! — Huntington. 

One sweetly solemn thought. — Phoebe Cary. 

Rock of Ages, cleft for me. — Toplady. 

Safe in the arms of Jesus. — Fanny Crosby. 

Servant of God, well done. — C. Wesley. 

Servant of God, well done. — Jas. Montgomery. 

Sometime we 11 understand. — M. M. Cornelius. 

Shall we gather at the river. — Lowry. 

Shall we meet beyond the river? — Hastings. 

Some sweet day, by and by. — Edna L. Park. 

There is a land of pure delight. — Watts. 

There 's a land that is fairer than day. — Bennett. 

The homeland ! 0, the homeland ! — H. R. Haweis. 

The silver cord. — Ida Taylor. 

There is an hour of peaceful rest. — W. B. Tap- 
pan. 

Vital spark of heavenly flame. — Pope. 

We shall sleep, but not forever. — Mrs. Kidder. 

What a Friend we have in Jesus. — J. Scriven. 

Why do we mourn departing friends? — Watts. 

Why should our tears of sorrow flow? — W. H. 
Bathurst. 

When my life-work is ended. — Fanny Crosby. 

186 



Funeral Poems for Reading or 
Quotation 

A Dirge. — Mrs. Hemans. 
Adonais. — Shelley. 
Alone. — Eobert J. Burdette. 
At a Funeral. — Heber. 
Babe Christabel. — Gerald Massey. 
Ballad of Babie Bell.— Aldrich. 
Beyond the Veil. — Vaughan. 
Burial of the Dead. — Keble. 
Cowper's Grave. — Mrs. Browning. 
Crossing the Bar. — Tennyson. 
Death of An Infant. — John Milton. 
Decay of Life. — Francis Quarles. 
Death Carol.— Walt Whitman. 
Dirge for a Soldier. — G. H. Boker. 
Elegy in a Country Churchyard. — Gray. 
Graves of the Household. — Mrs. Hemans. 
Hamlet ? s Soliloquy. — Shakespeare. 
Hymn for the Dead. — Sir Walter Scott. 
Hymn to Death. — Bryant. 
In Memoriam. — Tennyson. 
Lalla Rookh — (line 278 seq.). — Moore. 
Lenore. — Edgar Allan Poe. 
Ly cidas. — Milton . 

Man Was Made to Mourn. — Burns. — 

187 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Ode : Intimations of Immortality. — Wordsworth. 
0, May I Join the Choir Invisible! — George 

Eliot. 
O Thou Who Dry'st the Mourner's Tear. — Thos. 

Moore. 
Over the River They Beckon to Me. — Nancy 

Priest. 
Resignation. — Longfellow. 
Some Day. — James Whitcomb Riley. 
Thanatopsis. — Bryant. 
The Conqueror's Grave. — Bryant. 
The Blue and the Gray. — Prances M. Pinch. 
The Death-bed.— Hood. 
The Death of the Flowers. — Bryant. 
The Dying Christian to His Soul. — Pope. 
The First Snowfall — (on the death of a child) . — 

Lowell. 
To Mary in Heaven. — Burns. 
The Grave. — Blair. 
The Future. — Rudyard Kipling. 
The Hour of Death. — Mrs. Hemans. 
The Reaper and the Flowers. — Longfellow. 
The Sleep. — Mrs. Browning. 
The Two Angels. — Longfellow. 
The Two Voices. — Tennyson. 
Threnodia — (on death of a baby boy). — Lowell. 
To Bear, to Nurse, to Rear. — Mrs. Hemans. 
The Common Lot. — Jas. Montgomery. 
The Grave of Anna. — Wm. Gifford. 
Thoughts of Heaven. — Robert Nicoll. 
Tragedy of Ella. — Chatterton. 



188 



Dying Words of Distinguished 
Persons 

Adams, John (1735-1826), 2d President of 
United States. — "Independence forever." 

Adams, John Quincy (1767-1848), 6th Presi- 
dent of United States. — "It is the last of 
earth; I am content." 

Addison, Joseph (1672-1719), Poet and Essay- 
ist. — "See in what peace a Christian can 
die." 

Adrian or Hadrian (76-138), Emperor of Rome. 
— "0, my poor soul, whither art thou go- 
ing?" 

Augustus Gaius Julius Cesar (63 B. C.-14 
A. D.), First Emperor of Rome. — "Vos 
plaudite. ' ' 

Baxter, Richard (1615-1691), English Divine. 
— "I have pain, but I have peace." 

Beecher, Henry Ward (1813-1887), American 
Divine. — "Now comes the mystery." 

Beethoven, Ludwig Van (1770-1827).— "I 
shall hear in heaven." 

Bellarmino, Cardinal Robero (1542-1621), 
Italian Cardinal. — "It is safest to trust in 
Jesus" — to one who inquired whether it 
was safer to trust in the Virgin Mary or 
in Jesus. 

189 



/ 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Brooks, Phillips (1835-1893), Bishop of Massa- 
chusetts. — " There is no other life but the 
eternal." 

Brown, John (1800-1859), American Abolition- 
ist. — "I am ready at any time; do not keep 
me waiting." 

Browning, Elizabeth B. (1805-1861), English 
Poet— "It is beautiful." 

Buchanan, James (1791-1868), 15th President 
of United States. — "0 Lord Almighty, as 
Thou wilt" 

Butler, Joseph (1692-1752), English Bishop 
and Author. — "I die happy." 

Byron, Lord (1788-1824), English Poet— 
" Shall I sue for mercy?" Then after a 
pause, he added, f ' Come, come, no weak- 
ness; let 's be a man to the last." 

Calvin, John (1509-1564), Eef ormer.— \ ' I am 
abundantly satisfied." 

Channing, "William Ellery (1780-1842), Amer- 
ican Divine. — "It will be very peaceful and 
quiet with me." 

Charles IX, of France (1550-1574), (who was 
responsible for the massacre of St. Bartholo- 
mew.) — "What murder! What blood! O, 
I have done wrong — God, pardon me." 

Chrysostom, John (350-407), Greek Father of 
Church. — "Glory to God for all things. 
Amen." 

Columbus, Christopher (1436-1506), Discov- 
erer of America. — "Father, into chy hands 
I commend my spirit." 
190 



DYING WORDS 

Confucius or Kong-fu-tse (B. C. 551-479), 
Chinese Philosopher, — "I have taught men 
how to live." 

Crosby, Howard (1826-1891), Presbyterian Di- 
vine. — "My heart is resting sweetly with 
Jesus, and my hand is in His." 

Darwin, Charles (1809-1882), English Scien- 
tist. — "I am not in the least afraid to die." 

Edward VII (1841-1910), King of England.— 
"Well, it is all over, but I have done my 
duty." 

Eliot, John (1604-1690), "Apostle to Indians." 
— < f O Come, Glory ! "Welcome, Joy. ' \ 

Elizabeth, Queen of England (1533-1603). — 
"All my possessions for one moment of 
time." 

Franklin, Benjamin (1706-1790), American 
Philosopher. — "A dying man can do noth- 
ing easy." 

Goethe or Gother, Johann (1749-1832), Ger- 
man Author. — "More light! More light!" 

Gough, John B. (1817-1886), American Lec- 
turer on Temperance. — "Young man, keep 
your record clean." 

Grey, Lady Jane (1537-1554), English Lady. — ■ 
"Lord, into Thy hands I commend my 
spirit." 

Hale, Nathan (1755-1776), American Patriot. 
— "I only regret that I have but one life 
to give for my country." 

Henry, Patrick (1736-1799). American Patriot. 
— "I trust in the mercy of God." 
191 



/ 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Hendricks, Thomas (1819-1885), Vice-President 
of United States. — "At rest at last. Now 
I am free from pain." 

Henry, Matthew (1662-1714), English Divine 
and Author. — "A life spent in the service 
of God and in communion with Him is the 
most comfortable and pleasant life that any 
one can live in this world." 

Hobbs, Thomas (1588-1679), English Philoso- 
pher and Infidel. — ' ' Now I am about to take 
my last voyage — a great leap in the dark." 

Humboldt, von, Karl (1767-1835), German 
Philosopher. At the time of his death the 
sun was shining brilliantly into his room. — 
"How grand these rays; they seem to 
beckon me to heaven." 

Huntingdon, Lady Selina (1707-1791), English 
Countess, patron of Methodism. — "My work 
is done; I have nothing to do but to go to 
my Father." 

Jackson, "Stonewall" (1824-1863), Confed- 
erate General. — "Very well, it is all right. 
Let us cross over the river and rest under 
the shade of the trees." 

Jefferson, Thomas (1743-1826), 3d President 
of United States. — "I resign my soul to 
God, my daughter to my country." 

Joan of Arc (1401-1431), French Heroine. — 
"Jesus! Jesus!" 

Julian, "The Apostate" (331-363), Koman Em- 
peror. — "Thou hast conquered, Galilean! 
Thou hast conquered." 
192 



DYING WORDS 

Knox, John (1505-1572), Scotch Reformer.— 
"Live in Christ and the flesh need not fear 
death." 

Luther, Martin (1483-1546), German Re- 
former. — "God is the Lord by whom we es- 
cape death." 

Mather, Cotton (1633-1728), American Divine 
and Author. — "I am going where all tears 
will be wiped away." 

Melancthon, Philip (1497-1568), German Re- 
former. — "Nothing else but heaven." 

Mohammed (570-632), Founder of Mohammed- 
ism. — "0, Allah, be it so! Henceforth 
among the glorious hosts of Paradise." 

Moody, D wight L. (1837-1899) , American Evan- 
gelist. — "I see the earth receding, heaven 
is opening. God is calling me." 

McKinley, William (1843-1901), 25th Presi- 
dent of United States.—" Nearer, my God, 
to Thee. Nearer to Thee! It is God's way. 
Good-bye, all!" 

Mozart, John C. (1756-1792), German Musical 
Composer. — "Did I not say that I was writ- 
ing the 'Requiem' for myself?" 

Napoleon (1769-1821), Emperor of France. — ■ 

"F6te d'armee." 
Poe, Edgar Allan (1811-1849), American Poet. 

— "Lord, help my soul." 

SWEDENBORG, EMMANUEL (1688-1772). — "It is 

well, thank you; God bless you." 

13 193 

y 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

Savonarola, Girolamo (1452-1498), Italian 

Monk, Reformer, and Martyr. — "My Lord 

was pleased to die for my sins : why should 

I not be glad to give up my poor life out of 

love for him? 7 ' 
Taylor, Jeremy (1613-1667), English Author. 

—"My trust is in God." 
Tennyson, Alfred (1809-1892), English Poet. 

— "I have opened it" — referring to gate of 

death. 
Tynpal, Matthew (1657-1733), English Author 

and Infidel.— "0 God — if there be a God — ■ 

have mercy on me!" 
Toplady, Augustus (1740-1778), writer of 

"Rock of Ages." — "No mortal man can live 

after the glories which God has manifested 

to my soul." 
Voltaire, Francois (1694-1778), French Author 

and Infidel. — "I am abandoned of God and 

men." 
Wallace, Lew (1827-1905), Author of "Ben 

Hur."— "Thy will be done." 
Washington, George (1732-1799), 1st President 

of United States.— "It is well." 
Wesley, Charles (1708-1788), Hymn writer. 

—"Satisfied." 
Wesley, John (1703-1791), Founder of Meth- 
odism. — "The best of all is, God is with us." 
Whittier, John G. (1807-1892), American Poet. 

— "Give my love to the world." 
Willard, Frances E. (1839-1898). — American 

Lecturer. — "It is so beautiful to be with 

God." 194 



Funeral Etiquette 

I. Before the Funeral 

1. "When a death has occurred in a minis- 
ter's congregation it becomes his immediate duty 
to call on the bereaved family and offer words 
of sympathy and Christian consolation. This 
duty is not confined to members of his own 
church, but extends to all people in such sorrow 
within the bounds of his parish, who have no 
other pastor. 

2. Under no circumstances should the minis- 
ter offer his services to officiate at the funeral. 
The family may have other plans, and if they 
desire his services they should be the first to 
speak. 

II. "When Eequested to Officiate 

1. A minister has no right to refuse to officiate 
at a funeral, within the bounds of his own pas- 
toral charge, unless he has a previous engage- 
ment of equal importance. 

2. When his services are requested, he should 
see some member or friend of the family in order 
to learn their wishes. He should know some- 
thing of the character, personal history, family 
connections, Church relationship, and the cir- 

195 



/ 



PASTOK'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

cumstances of the death of the deceased. Some 
knowledge of these things is absolutely necessary 
and may save the minister serious embarrass- 
ment in his prayers and remarks during the 
services. 

3. It is customary and proper for the family 
to send a carriage for the clergyman; but in 
any case he should be at the house ten minutes 
before the time appointed, and, if convenient, 
should see the friends before the service begins. 

4. He should have the plan and program of 
the service arranged in every detail, with Scrip- 
ture, hymns, etc., carefully selected and ar- 
ranged. Singers often make their own selec- 
tions, but the minister should know the number 
and character and see that they are suitable for 
the subject and occasion, for he alone is respon- 
sible for the entire religious services. He should 
have everything so perfectly in hand that no 
word of explanation or direction will be neces- 
sary during the services. 

5. The minister should understand that he 
has absolute control of the religious part of the 
services and that alone. The undertaker has 
charge of all other matters. 

III. At the Services 

1. The service should begin exactly at the time 
appointed. Tardiness on the part of the minister 
or singers is inexcusable. 

2. If the service be held in a church, and the 

196 



v\. 



FUNERAL ETIQUETTE 

minister is requested to go to the house, a brief 
prayer is usually made before leaving the home. 

3. The minister should precede the remains 
and while passing up the aisle of the church 
he should read aloud the Service for the Dead, 
or other brief Scripture passages, the organ play- 
ing a solemn march very softly. 

4. The following Order of Service is usually 
observed, but may be varied to suit the ideas 
of the officiating minister: 



1. Hymn. 

2. Scripture Beading. 

3. Prayer. 

4. Hymn. 

5. Sermon or Address. 

6. Benediction. 



or 

' this 



'1. Scripture Reading, 

2. Prayer. 

3. Hymn. 

4. Remarks. 

5. Hymn. 

^6. Benediction. 



5. As to manner, the minister should be dig- 
nified and solemn, subdued and sympathetic, but 
natural and earnest. He should speak in a clear, 
distinct voice, but should avoid anything abrupt 
or startling. He should exercise absolute self- 
control, his duty being not to excite emotion or 
grief, but to calm and quiet it. Any attempt 
at oratorical display is entirely out of place. 

6. As to the subject matter of the funeral dis- 
course, lessons drawn from the Holy Scriptures 
are more valuable than from any other source. 
Remarks concerning the life of the deceased are 
usually expected, but these should be made with 
great caution, especially in case of strangers. 
Where the deceased has not been a Christian or 
even morally good, the minister should be very 

197 



PASTOK'S IDEAL FUNEKAL BOOK 

careful, for while he can not with propriety* 
utter a word of censure or criticism at such a 
time, he must not compromise his religious con- 
victions in the least. Silence in such cases is 
golden. 

7. The address or sermon should be brief, ten 
or fifteen minutes being sufficient. The entire 
service should not exceed one-half hour or forty- 
five minutes at most. 

IV* At the Cemetery 

1. The minister should precede the remains 
to the place of interment and, standing at the 
foot of the grave, after the casket has been low- 
ered, he should read, in a clear voice, the Service 
for Burial of the Dead. No additional remarks 
should be made. Singing is sometimes permis- 
sible, but not at all necessary at the cemetery. 

2. At the conclusion of the service the minister 
should speak a parting word of personal sym- 
pathy to the members of the bereaved family 
before leaving the cemetery. 

Note. — A minister should make no charges for his 
services, other than for his personal expenses ; but 
where a fee is tendered there is no impropriety in his 
accepting it as a gift of appreciation, provided the 
family is in comfortable circumstances. 

A valuable work on Funeral Etiquette is, "The 
Funeral" by Rev. J. N. Greene. 



198 



Burial of the Dead 



A SHORT FORM 

At the house or church. 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present 
help in trouble. Ps. 46 : 1. 

Like as a father pitieth his children, so the 
Lord pitieth them that fear Him. For He 
knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we 
are dust. Ps. 103 : 13, 14. 

Let us pray. 

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose 
will is supreme, whose pity is infinite, and whose 
love is everlasting: Be pleased to look down 
upon us in our sorrow ; help and heal the broken 
hearts before Thee. May these bereaved friends 
be meekly submissive to Thy righteous will, 
knowing that Thou art too wise to err and too 
good to be unkind. Fill their desolate hearts 
with faith and love that they may cling more 
closely to Thee, who bringest life out of death, 
and turnest our grief into eternal joy, through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Dear Friends : We are again in the sanctua^ 
of sorrow. In obedience to the divine command 

199 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

we have come to "weep with those who weep." 
While we share the sorrows of others, we also 
weep for ourselves, for each of us to-day can 
recall some sacred form, and our heart cries, 

"0, for the touch of a vanished hand; 
And the sound of a voice that is still." 

Death is no uncommon messenger, and yet he 
is one to whom we can not become accustomed 
or reconciled. But we rejoice, even in the midst 
of our tears, that we believe in One who has 
triumphed over death and the grave and has 
brought life and immortality to light through 
the gospel. 

In this faith we live ; in this faith we lay our 
dead away; and in this faith we expect to die 
ourselves, with a confident hope of a blissful 
reunion, with loved ones gone, in that glorious 
home beyond. 

Now the God of peace, that brought again 
from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shep- 
herd of the sheep, through the blood of the 
everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every 
good work to do His will, working in you that 
which is well pleasing in His sight, through 
Jesus Christ: to whom be glory for ever and 
ever. Amen. 

At the grave. 

I am the resurrection and the life: he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall 

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BURIAL OF THE DEAD 

he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in 
me shall never die. Jn. 11 : 25, 26. 

We brought nothing into this world and it is 
certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord 
gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed 
be the name of the Lord. 1 Ti. 4 : 7 ; Job 1 : 21. 

Then, while earth (or flowers) is being cast 
upon the casket, the minister shall say: 

Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God 
to take out of this world the soul of our de- 
parted brother (or sister, or this child), we 
therefore commit his body to the ground; earth 
to earth; ashes to ashes; dust to dust; looking 
for the resurrection of the dead, and life in the 
world to come through our Lord Jesus Christ; 
at whose second coming in glorious majesty the 
earth and the sea shall give up their dead; and 
the mortal bodies of those who sleep in Him shall 
be changed and made like unto His own glorious 
body ; according to the mighty working whereby 
He is able to subdue all things unto Himself. 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the 
love of God, and the communion of the Holy 
Ghost, be with you all. Amen. 

—A. H. D. 



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PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

THE EPISCOPAL SERVICE 

(Abbreviated) 

In General Use by the Methodist, Presbyterian, 
Baptist, and Other Churches. 

The Minister, going before the corpse, shall say: 
I am the resurrection, and the life: he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall 
he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in 
me shall never die. Jn. 11 : 25, 26. 

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that 
he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 
and , though after my skin worms destroy this 
body, yet in my flesh shall I see God : whom I 
shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, 
and not another. Job 19 : 25-27. 

"We brought nothing into this world, and it 
is certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord 
gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be 
the name of the Lord. 1 Ti. 6:7; Job 1 : 21. 

(Jn the house or church may be read the follow- 
ing portions of the Holy Scriptures, viz.: 
Ps. 39, Ps. 90, and 1 Co. 15: 41-58.) 

At the grave, when the corpse is laid in the earth, 
the minister shall say: 

Man that is born of a woman hath but a short 
time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh 
up, and is cut down like a flower: he fleeth as 
it were a shadow, and never continueth in one 
stay. 

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BURIAL OF THE DEAD 

In the midst of life we are in death : of whom 
may we seek for succor, but of thee, Lord, 
who for our sins are justly displeased? 

Yet Lord God most holy, Lord most 
mighty, O holy and most merciful Savior, deliver 
us not into the bitter pains of eternal death. 

Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts ; 
shut not thy merciful ears to our prayers, but 
spare us, Lord most holy; God most mighty, 
holy and merciful Savior, thou most worthy 
Judge eternal, suffer us not at our last hour for 
any pains of death to fall from thee. 

Then, while the earth shall be cast upon the body 
by some standing by, the minister shall say : 
Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God, 
in his wise providence, to take out of the world 
the soul of the departed, we therefore commit 
his body to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to 
ashes, dust to dust ; looking for the general resur- 
rection in the last day, and life in the world to 
come, through our Lord Jesus Christ; at whose 
second coming in glorious majesty to judge the 
world, the earth and the sea shall give up their 
dead; and the corruptible bodies of those who 
sleep in him shall be changed and made like 
unto his own glorious body; according to the 
mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all 
things xinto himself. 

Then shall be said: 

I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, 
Write, From henceforth blessed are the dead 

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PASTOB'S IDEAL FUNEEAL BOOK 

who die in the Lord: Even so, saith the Spirit; 
for they rest from their labors. 

Then shall the minister say: 

Lord, have mercy upon us. 
Christ, have mercy upon us. 
Lord, have mercy upon us. 

Then shall the minister offer this prayer: 
Almighty God, with whom do live the spirits 
of those who depart hence in the Lord, and with 
whom the souls of the faithful, after they are 
delivered from the burden of the flesh, are in 
joy and felicity : we give thee hearty thanks for 
the good examples of all those thy servants, who, 
having finished their course in faith, do now 
rest from their labors. And we beseech thee, 
that we, with all those who are departed in the 
true faith of thy holy name, may have our per- 
fect consummation and bliss, both in body and 
soul, in thy eternal and everlasting glory, 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

The Collect. 

merciful God, the Father of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, who is the resurrection and the life; in 
whom whosoever believeth shall live, though he 
die, and whosoever liveth and believeth in him 
shall not die eternally; we meekly beseech thee, 
Father, to raise us from the death of sin unto 
the life of righteousness; that when we shall 
depart this life we may rest in him; and at the 
general resurrection on the last day may be 

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BURIAL OF THE DEAD 

found acceptable in his sight, and receive that 
blessing which thy well-beloved Son shall then 
pronounce to all that love and fear thee, saying, 
Come, ye blessed children of my Father, receive 
the kingdom prepared for you. from the begin- 
ning of the world. Grant this, we beseech thee, 
merciful Father, through Jesus Christ our 
Mediator and Redeemer. Amen. 

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be 
thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be 
done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this 
day our daily bread: and forgive us our tres- 
passes, as we forgive them that trespass against 
us : and lead us not into temptation, but deliver 
us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the 
power, and the glory, forever. Amen. 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the 
love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy 
Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen. 



205 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

REFORMED CHURCH SERVICE 

(Also used by Presbyterian, Congregational, and 
other Churches.) 

On entering the church, or at the beginning of 
the services at the house, the minister may 
use the folloiving sentences: 

I am the resurrection and the life, saith the 
Lord; he that believeth in me, though he were 
dead yet shall he live : and whosoever liveth and 
believeth in me shall never die. 

None of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth 
to himself ; for whether we live we live unto the 
Lord, and whether we die we die unto the Lord : 
whether we live therefore or die, we are the 
Lord's. For to this end Christ both died and 
rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of 
the dead and living. 

We brought nothing into this world, and it is 
certain we can carry nothing out. 

The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; 
blessed be the name of the Lord. 

Then may be read, or chanted, Ps. 90. 
Then may be read also 1 Co. 15 : 31-58. 

After the reading of the Holy Scripture, the 
minister shall say: 

Let us pray. 

Almighty and most merciful God, the conso- 
lation of the sorrowful, and the support of the 
weary, who dost not willingly grieve or afflict 
the children of men; look down in tender love 

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BURIAL OF THE DEAD 

and pity, we beseech thee, upon thy servants, 
this bereaved household, whose joy is turned into 
mourning: and according to the multitude of 
thy mercies be pleased to uphold, strengthen, 
and comfort them, that they may not faint under 
Thy Fatherly chastening, but find in thee their 
strength and refuge: through Jesus Christ our 
Lord. Amen. 

Our Father, etc. (The Lord's Prayer.) 

Then may follow an ADDRESS. 

After which the minister shall say: Let us pray: 
Almighty God, with whom do live the spirits 
of those who depart hence in the Lord, and with 
whom the souls of the faithful, after they are 
delivered from the burden of the flesh, are in 
joy and felicity ; we give Thee hearty thanks for 
the good examples of all those Thy servants who, 
having finished their course in faith, do now rest 
from their labors. And we beseech Thee that 
we, with all those who are departed in the true 
faith of Thy holy name, may have our perfect 
consummation and bliss, both in body and soul, 
in Thy eternal and everlasting glory; through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Thou ever-blessed Mediator, who wast dead, 
but livest forever, of w T hom the whole family in 
heaven and earth is named, who hast knit all 
Thy saints in one communion unto life eternal, 
in that mystical body of which Thou art the 
glorious and everliving Head, grant us grace 

207 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

so to follow Thy blessed saints, who have gone 
before us, in the faith and fellowship of Thy 
holy Church, that we may come to those un- 
speakable joys which Thou hast prepared for 
all that love Thee, from the foundation of the 
world. Amen. 

God, whose days are without end, and whose 
mercies can not be numbered, make us, we be- 
seech Thee, deeply sensible of the shortness and 
uncertainty of human life; and let Thy Holy 
Spirit lead us through this vale of misery, in 
holiness and righteousness all the days of our 
lives: that when we shall have served Thee in 
our generation, we may be gathered unto our 
fathers, having the testimony of a good con- 
science: in the communion of the Christian 
Church; in the confidence of a certain faith; 
in the comfort of a reasonable, religious, and 
holy hope; in favor with Thee our God, and in 
perfect charity with the world; all which we 
ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Then, standing near the coffin, or having reached 
the place of burial, the minister will say: 

In the midst of life we are in death ! 

What helper shall we seek but Thee, Lord, 
who because of our sins art justly angry ! 

O Holy God, Holy and Strong, Holy and Com- 
passionate Savior, 

Give us not over to bitter death ! 



208 



BURIAL OF THE DEAD 

Then, while the earth shall be cast upon the body 
by some standing by, the minister will say: 

Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God 
to take out of the world the soul of our departed 
brother, we therefore commit his body to the 
ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to 
dust ; looking for the general resurrection in the : 
last day, and life of the world to come, through 
our Lord Jesus Christ; at whose second coming 
in glorious majesty to judge the world, the earth 
and the sea shall give up their dead; and the 
corruptible bodies of those who sleep in Him 
shall be changed, and made like unto his own 
glorious body ; according to the working whereby 
He is able even to subdue all things unto Him- 
self. 

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He 
shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. 
And though after my skin worms destroy this 
body, yet in my flesh shall I see God; whom I 
shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold 
and not another. 

I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, 
concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow 
not, even as others which have no hope. For 
if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 
even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God 
bring with Him. 

Let us pray. 

Almighty God, who by the death of Thy dear 
Son Jesus Christ hast destroyed death, by His 
H 209 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

rest in the tomb hast sanctified the graves of the 
saints; and by his glorious resurrection hast 
brought life and immortality to light : receive, 
we beseech thee, our unfeigned thanks for that 
victory over death and the grave which He has 
obtained for us and for all who sleep in Him; 
and keep us in everlasting fellowship with all 
that wait for Thee on earth, and with all that 
are around Thee in heaven; in union with Him 
who is the Resurrection and the Life; who liveth 
and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, 
ever one God, world without end. Amen. 

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, who, in 
Thy perfect wisdom and mercy, hast ended, for 
Thy servants departed, the voyage of this 
troublous life; Grant, we beseech Thee, that we 
who are still to continue our course amidst 
earthly dangers, temptations, and troubles, may 
evermore be protected by Thy mercy; and 
finally come to the haven of eternal salvation, 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the 
love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy 
Ghost, be with you all, evermore. Amen. 



210 



BUEIAL OF THE DEAD 



COMMITTALS. 

Note.— Committals are usually read or spoken after the 
casket has been lowered into the grave, but where a lowering 
device is used the words may be spoken while the casket is 
slowly descending. Where convenient, flowers or sprigs of 
evergreen should be used instead of earth with the words 
44 earth to earth," etc. In bad weather services at the grave 
should be very brief. 



FOR A CHILD 

Our Heavenly Father: In Thine infinite wis- 
dom and great love Thou hast seen fit to call 
back to Thyself the sweet, pure spirit of this 
little child, so we commit the tender body to 
the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, and 
dust to dust, in sure and certain hope of a 
glorious resurrection unto eternal life through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

FOR A YOUNG PERSON 

We have come now to lay all that is mortal 
of our young friend in the silent cemetery of 
the dead; but we sorrow not as others who 
have no hope for we believe in Him who said, 
"I am the resurrection and the life: he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall 
he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in 
me shall never die." We therefore commit this 
body to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to 
ashes, dust to dust — in the hope of a resurrec- 
tion through Jesus Christ our Lord unto ever- 
lasting life, Amen. 



211 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

FOR A PERSON IN MIDDLE LIFE 

In the midst of life we are in death. We 
brought nothing into this world, and it is certain 
we can carry nothing out. The Lord gave and 
the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the name 
of the Lord. And now we commit the mortal 
remains of this our friend and brother to the 
earth whence it came, earth to earth, ashes to 
ashes ? dust to dust, in the name of the Father, 
and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen. 

FOR AN AGED PERSON 

I know that Thou wilt bring me to death and 
to the house appointed for all living. I heard a 
voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed 
are the dead which die in the Lord, from hence- 
forth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest 
from their labors; and their works do follow 
them. 

Forasmuch as it has pleased Almighty God 
to take out of this world the soul of our de- 
parted brother, we therefore commit his body to 
the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust 
to dust, in the hope of a blessed and glorious 
resurrection unto eternal life through Jesus 
Christ our Lord. Amen. 



212 



BENEDICTIONS 

FOE THE BURIAL OF A SOLDIER 

The march of another soldier is over, his 
battles are all fought, his victories all won, and 
as in other days he lies down to rest awhile 
under the arching sky awaiting the bugle's call. 

Behold the silver cord is loosed, the golden 
bowl is broken. We therefore commit his body 
to the grave, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust 
to dust, looking for the resurrection in the life 
to come through our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. 

FOR A BURIAL AT SEA 

Use any of the above, but instead of saying 
earth to earth, etc., say, "We commit his body to 
the deep, ' ' and ' ' the sea shall give up her dead, ' ' 
etc. 

BENEDICTIONS 

To God only wise, be glory through Jesus 
Christ forever. Amen. Ro. 16 : 27. 

Grace be unto you, and peace from God our 
Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Co. 
1:3. 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the 
love of God, and the communion of the Holy 
Ghost, be with you all. Amen. 2 Co. 13 : 14. 

Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ 
be with your spirit. Amen. Gal. 6:18. 

Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, 
from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 
Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus 
Christ in sincerity. Amen. Eph. 6 : 23, 24. 

213 



\ the 



PASTOR'S IDEAL FUNERAL BOOK 

The peace of God, which passeth all under- 
standing, shall keep your hearts and minds 
through Christ Jesus. Now unto God and our 
Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. 
Ph. 4:7, 20. 

Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father 
and Jesus Christ our Lord. 2 Ti. 1 : 2. 

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father 
and the Lord Jesus Christ. Philem. 3. 

Now the God of peace, that brought again from 
dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of 
the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting 
covenant, make you perfect in every good work 
to do his will, working in you that which is 
well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ : 
to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. He. 
13:20, 21. 

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you 
through the knowledge of God and of Jesus 
Christ our Lord. 2 P. 1 : 2. 

Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from 
God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, 
the Son of the Father, in truth and love. 2 Jn. 3. 

Now unto him that is able to keep you from 
falling, and to present you faultless before the 
presence of His glory with exceeding joy, To 
the only wise God our Savior be glory and 
majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. 
Amen. Jude 24, 25. 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with 

all. Amen. Rev. 22:21. « ^ 

H ? '" I 

214 



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